I Was Called for Jury Duty in Richmond, VA. Here's What I Wish I'd Known.
5 min read
Welp, it finally happened. I was called for Jury Duty. I think I must be a weirdo because I was curious and, honestly, looking forward to the opportunity to experience it.
TL;DR #
If I could send past me an email, this is what I'd want to know.
- When you first call in, you get an older recording and it's slightly out of date. I recommend listening to it at least once all the way through, but on the following check-ins you can just press 1 to go straight to see if you've been selected.
- The instructions for jury duty say plastic containers only, but you can bring stainless steel insulated water bottles and coffee mugs. I think the main thing they're trying to keep out is glass.
- Bring some snacks. There are vending machines on LL, but the jury selection part happened on the 3rd floor, and once we went up, we did not have access to them. The jury selection part ran late for our group, so it was very late in the afternoon before they ordered us Jimmy John's on the first day. Other than breakfast, I had a Coke and a granola bar the whole day.
- Lunch was Jimmy John's. Plan accordingly.
- Pizza was served on our late day.
- Bring some magazines or a book because there's lots of waiting.
- If you can, leave your phone and smartwatch in the car or at home. If you bring one in, they'll ask you to turn it off and place it into a locked pouch that you carry on your person. This makes it inaccessible until you get the pouch unlocked on your way out.
- Wear an analog watch. Not all the rooms we waited in had clocks.
- The letter says to show up to room LL 2, but there is no room LL 2. The recording says LL 3, and this was the correct room. LL stands for lower level. Once you're through security, catch the elevator down one floor to LL and that's pretty much where you need to be. LL 3 is well marked.
- You're paid $50 per day, but it can take weeks for the money to come.
The Process #
For me, there were two distinct phases: onboarding and jury trial selection.
Onboarding #
I received a questionnaire via USPS from the City of Richmond with instructions to fill it in and return it. A few weeks later, I received another letter instructing me to call in every Monday after 4:30 p.m. to see if my name had been selected. On the second week, my name was picked and the recording instructed me on where and when to report.
I didn't know what to expect other than the instructions on the letter and in the phone recording. I knew I couldn't bring electronics or pocket knives or really anything. I walked in with my wallet and the key fob for the van and pretty much nothing else.
I checked in by showing a photo ID and was assigned my jury number and given my proof of attendance. We were shown a presentation and watched a video. I didn't find this part very informative, if I'm honest.
At this point, all jurors moved up to the third floor into an empty court room where the initial pool of 24 jurors were randomly selected. The entire group, selected and unselected jurors, then moved to the actual court room with the lawyers, judge and defendant. The 24 selected jurors were seated in front of the railing while the unselected jurors were seated behind the rail in the audience gallery.
Voir Dire #
Pronounced roughly like "vwar deer" (it's French, meaning "to speak the truth").
This is the process where the judge and attorneys from both sides question potential jurors to determine who will actually sit on the case. They're looking to identify any biases or conflicts of interest that might affect your ability to be impartial. Either side can have jurors dismissed, either "for cause" (a specific reason) or through a limited number of "peremptory challenges," where they can dismiss someone without giving a reason.
We were told about the case so we knew it was a rape case.
The judge started off with his questions, which were more general in nature. For example:
- Raise your right hand if you speak English.
- Do you know or are you related to anyone in law enforcement?
- Do you recognize any of your fellow jurors?
- Do you recognize any of the lawyers in the case?
- The defendant can remain silent. Must you hear from the defendant to form an opinion on innocence or guilt?
The lawyers' questions were more specific. For example:
- Have you or anyone close to you been the victim of sexual assault?
- Do you apply any special weight to DNA evidence?
- Does anyone have any special training with regard to DNA?
After each round of questions, one from the judge and one each from the prosecution and defense, they would step out into the hall and confer among themselves. They'd return, and then some jurors would be asked to move back behind the rail and were replaced by previously unselected but available jurors.
Eventually the 24 were whittled down to 14, which is 12 jurors and 2 alternates. No one knows who the alternates are, as the court randomly selects and seals that information until the jury goes back for deliberation.
At this point, the other jurors went back to the jury waiting area on LL, while we took a quick break and prepared to start hearing evidence.
I'll write about my experience as a juror in a separate post, but this marks the end of onboarding and selection.
