Jury Duty

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A random thought came over me yesterday and I was really curious to know what people's thoughts and experiences were.

Have you been on a jury or not? Why do you think you were chosen or not by the lawyer? Do people think that aspies would be good to have on a jury or not? Do you have anxiety over being called up for jury duty?

Personally, I have a lot of anxiety about being called for jury duty and I hope I never am (knock on wood).

i have never been called up to serve on a jury.

Personally i don't think i would make a good juror, partially on the anxiety but moreso that i would not be able to tell if a witness is lying or what parts he or she is lying about, plus can't read the body language of the defendant to determine if subtle movements indicate guilt or innocence.

I did it recently, it was fun! I was the 13th alternate in case someone got sick. They didn't tell me that, but it was obvious. I liked the break from work, and feeling like a dutiful citizen.

I am going to jury duty for first time in September.

I did jury duty but was not called to serve, fortunately for everyone involved. I just went downtown and sat in a big room with a lot of other bored-looking people and read a book for two days and got paid for it.

On the morning of the first day one of the judges came in and gave us a little talk and asked if there were people who had ADD or other conditions like that, and said that those people would be excused. I didn't raise my hand since I'm not formally diagnosed with anything but depression, but I knew that I have trouble remembering auditory-only information--all I remember from most rock concerts I've been to was what the people in front of me were wearing, and I wasn't even drunk or stoned. I probably should have excused myself, but I really didn't want to go to work.

I never want to do jury duty and if they send me things in the mail about it they can't prove that I actually got them.

I have to go to court one time last year and I never want to go again. Now I'm reluctant to call the police. Last year I had to talk in front of the grand jury because I was a witness to a crime. Next time I see something I'll think twice about calling the police.

The idea of going totally freaks me out. I don't leave my house much and going there every day would be horrible, being sequestered would be even worse.

Fior got called to jury duty.

He told the laywer he doesn't watch TeeVee.
Listens to National Public Radio
Is an Aspie

Got punted to the curb like a hald dead possum.
He was a hit muffed at that.

I served on a criminal trial jury a while back. On the second day, the defense attorney threw a fit about something one of the state's witnesses (a cop) said while on the stand. The judge sent us back to the deliberation room while he and both the prosecution and defense argued. The judge came to the deliberation room later, visibly bewildered, and dismissed us. He said that they'd have to do the whole thing over again with a new jury since we'd heard something that could influence our verdict, according to the defense attorney.


I was neutral on the case at hand and had no knowledge of the alleged crime or the suspect. They want jurors with no preordained opinions on the case or anything related to it.


Depends on the individual. I will tell you that to be a juror worthy of being a part of the judicial process you need to be able to look at evidence and listen to testimony and decide based on that. Regardless of what they tell you, a defense attorney’s goal is to get their client off the hook regardless of actual guilt. The prosecution’s goal is to convict regardless of actual guilt. For them it’s simply a win or lose scenario so it’s up to the jury to focus on facts.


I did have anxiety because it was a whole new experience and one that I had not expected. My employer paid for my time there as if I were at work so that was not an issue.


Being called for jury duty does not mean you’ll be serving on a jury, just that you’ll go through a selection process and may wind up on a jury. Chances are you won’t get selected to serve.

Last edited by Raptor on 17 Jul 2013, 5:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Because I have epilepsy, I can't serve on a jury.

I have served on two juries. Both civil, not criminal. One was at my county courthouse at the time, the other was a federal case in Philadelphia.

I don't know why I was chosen for those. I got dismissed from being picked for a criminal case once because I have a degree in criminal justice. One of the civil cases I did sit on I was surprised because they asked if any of us had worked for the hospital that was being sued and I did raise my hand, for some reason they still kept me.

I think when it comes to assessing the evidence and remembering what was said by the attorneys and witnesses that aspies would definitely have a leg up on other jurors but I'm not sure I (or we) really understand people's intentions and motives and that side of it might be difficult.

I don't really like new experiences. I don't even like going to a different grocery store but I've learned that sometimes I just have to suck it up and do things I don't want to do and to just deal with it best I can. The federal one was the harder one to deal with because I had to take the train to the city for a week and I really don't cope well in cities.

Most people just go and sit all day and go home. I'd take a book if you get called in for jury duty.

I was called up for jury duty once but didn't pass voir dire, the jury selection process. Would've been fun, though as I wasn't working at the time and I definitely needed the money.

I was a registered voter in NY so I guess that's where they got my information.

I did Jury duty couple months ago. I was very worried about my anxiety. I got selected and did two days. It was quite good actually, and very interesting. Not as much to worry about as I expected.

I did jury service last summer. It lasted a week and a half and was not too bad. I even made friends with another juror. Watching the attendants walking around in their black robes really reminded me of Jedi, haha. It was nice to see justice being done!

I got called for two different hearings. The first was really easy, about burglary. I was also nominated to be the speaker for the jury that time, but it was only a small court. The judge even gave us an extra option instead of guilty/not guilty. We got to look at floor plans, CCTV footage and everything.

The second one was a lot harder but I think having little understanding of social interaction actually made it easier for me. The witnesses were all unreliable, the police had completely failed to do their jobs, the whole case was an absolute mess and the defence attorney was a slimy snob who reminded me of Piers Morgan. It was like watching an episode of Coronation Street or Hollyoaks or something because they were all sleeping with each other and had all these weird personal vendettas. I took a lot of notes. There were a few fellow jurors who had the wrong opinions and were really stubborn about changing their minds. In the end most of us agreed that although some sort of crime was committed, there was not enough evidence to prosecute (nice going police!). When we announced the decision one of the defendants leapt up and yelled, "YES!!"

I think some aspies might be better for Jury duty because some of the NTs I was with were basing their opinions on whether they got good vibes or not from the witnesses and defendants, and the attorneys both try and manipulate you with their words and try to make you emotional. That said, I was still very nervous about being in a new place on my own (and managed to fall over on the first day and tear my new trousers I had brought especially) but everyone was nice and they explained everything as we went along.

I got called once--I think I ended up sitting there for about a week, with a book (yes, ALWAYS bring one with you).

Eventually, my group was called for a civil case, and I was sure we were going to be called for voir dire, but then, after lunch, we were sent back to the jury room--the two sides had settled out of court. I believe that was my last day. I haven't been called since.

I got a letter saying that I had been selected for the first round in the selection process once, this shortly after I turned old enough to do it, mom filled out the reply saying I had Asperger's and a list of reasons why I may not be a good choice and never heard back again. The fact is I kind of would like to experence being on a jury some day and I fell like I would do great, its just they pay awful and sometimes the cases can drag on for weeks and months only for someone to walk in with a newspaper causing a automatic re-trial and thus wasteing my time(I know of someone who had this happen). We will have to see if I get selected again, perhaps I am now black listed. I was on a mock jury twice in high school and that was fun except the kids messed up trial once.

Pray that you're black listed. Seriously.