If it was voluntary nobody would go. It’s a part of the constitution. To be judged by your peers. It prevents government from stepping in there and throwing anyone they want into jail for the rest of their life. In this country you’re innocent until proven guilty. And although many people see jury duty as an inconvenience, they understand that it’s an obligation that makes this country what it is. Free.
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I got called for jury duty in my rural county. So, I go down to the county courthouse and try out the old “I don’t hear all that well” spiel. The district attorneys office representative said that maybe I would be a great fit for the grand jury. I tried to object, however; they offered a sign language interpreter, a loop system for the grand jury room, a computer screen where I could see the speech in real time (there was a stenographer assigned to the jury duty pool" or fly solo if I thought that I did not need any of the other options available. So, I had to go in every Wednesday for 6 months. I did well, and only rarely had to ask anyone in the room to repeat themselves.
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That’s kind of amazing that a rural town has all those different features available. My guess is that it’s the exception and not what you normally find. But good for them.
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I showed up for jury duty where on the first day, as part of the jury selection process, potential jurors sit in the box and are grilled by the attorneys. They need to know if you can’t hear well. Neither the prosecutor nor the defense attorney want someone who can’t hear. Two of us claimed we were hearing aid wearers and were immediately excused, without proof of hearing loss. In my case, it only made good sense to get myself off the jury. If I heard the proceedings as well as I hear my wife, someone’s in trouble. 
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Wow! That wasn’t offered in my county’s courtrooms. We “hard of hearing” people were kicked out.
I asked my audiologist what I should do. He said with my hearing loss, I wouldn’t do well. He wrote a letter; I submitted it and was excused from jury pool and jury duty. Ontario Canada…
Wow! That wasn’t offered in my county’s courtrooms
We are a small county. The county seat is approx 13,000 people and there is no other town of any significance in the county. There is a significant drug usage problem. The potential jury pool is limited by the above issues. The county attorneys office bend over backwards to accommodate anyone who wishes to serve, or is drafted to serve. I too was astonished by the level of things they were willing to do. But it makes me feel included in my (community) county.
Dan
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Would be happy enough to accept the call I got for UK jury service, but having seen inside our town court and understood almost nothing in the blurry echoing space I wrote back to explain that a loop system would be essential, fed by a roving mic so I could hear every contribution. I was excused. But it’s a frustration. Backward, indifferent.
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Some counties excuse service based on advanced age-- 70 is typical. Definitely work on the “letter from doctor” angle. . . . such as D.Au.
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I’m in the UK and in my 30s. Never been called for Jury Service. Have no idea why.
Mistakenly my twin brother has been called 4 years ago, despite being a Police Officer for 16 years.
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In Massachusetts they are terrible about providing accommodations. You won’t have any problem if you don’t want to serve. The discrimination is against those who do.
Hi all. Don’t know if this thread is still active, but looking for some advice. Was called for jury duty in Miami-Dade county recently (last time was a few years ago).
Back in December 2020 I was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma (tumor of the ear nerve) on my left side by my ENT via MRI & audiology test, & had it surgically removed in February 2021 resulting in complete/total hearing loss. Hearing in my right ear is still good (but not perfect).
Would this type of hearing loss situation be able to get me permanently excused? Since hearing loss isn’t considered a form of impairment or disability. Anyone had a similar experience? Can’t add the older age excuse (I’m 48).
Also have a tough time hearing conversations clearly in a crowded room (& sometimes if someone is far away) even with the other ear. Can’t use a traditional hearing aid for this type of loss either, it’s a special kind that’s very expensive.
Would a copy of my audiology test that I took before the surgery (which already showed almost no hearing left in my left ear) be sufficient enough? Or should I include a letter from my ENT (or even the surgeon who operated on me) stating that I completely lost my hearing on the left side due to my acoustic neuroma & now have trouble hearing even with one ear?
Thanks in advance. Very new to this, so have a lot of questions & concerns.
I’m not American, but I would guess you’d need a letter from your audiologist. People without hearing loss, or even with mild bilateral hearing loss, have a hard time understanding how single sided loss impacts hearing.
Though, my personal bias is that all courtrooms should offer live captions and streamed audio like dan’s county did, and that many people with hearing loss would be able to serve with these supports.
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I’m Canadian. My audiologist wrote a letter. It worked. I was released from the Jury Pool after mailing the letter into the Sheriff’s Office.
DaveL
Toronto
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Hearing loss is a disability protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If you want to serve you should request the accommodation of captions (CART) with microphones for all speakers, and an assistive listening system. But as a lawyer, with a hearing loss, is d rather you asked to be excused because even with these accommodations you may miss important information.
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I’m having the opposite problem in supposedly enlightened Massachusetts. They are routinely bumping people with hearing loss who want to serve. The jury questionnaire asks is you need an assistive listening device, and when you get to the courthouse jury room you find no one knows what are where they are. I spent an embarrassing 15 minutes of everyone having to sit in the courtroom while they continued looking for the ALDs. But even after they were found, I was bumped.
Embarrassing for them.
They didn’t seem to be the least bit embarrassed. I told the judge I was unable to get one in the jury room and I would need one before she explained the facts of the case. She called the clerk over, the clerk disappeared for 15 minutes, returned, handed it to me, and then the judge continued speaking. I was obviously the one who caused the delay and there was no explanation or apology from the judge.
Your experience is strange. I’m in Massachusetts and wanted to serve on a jury. When I saw the jury questionnaire I was pleased that they asked if an ALD was needed. I checked the box, got there, and found no one knew what an ALD is or where it was. It took them a looooong time to find it, while everyone had to sit and wait because of me. Then I got excused even tho’ I didn’t want to be. I guess each county is different in their attitude toward accommodations.