An Attempt to Get Out of Jury Duty Could Land You in Jail

 A Hawaiian man found himself in jail after continuously shouting “he is guilty, he is guilty” in a courtroom hallway in an effort to get out of jury duty. Prior to his outburst, Jacob Maldonado has been called as a potential juror for a misdemeanor assault trial. After his outburst, the plaintiff and defendant’s lawyers both notified Judge Edward Kubo bout Maldonado’s conduct.

In addition to the trial being declared a mistrial, Maldonado was arrested on a contempt of court charged and the other 44 potential jurors were dismissed from jury service. After spending a single day in jail, the judge ultimately decided to not charge or fine Maldonado. However, prior to dismissing the charge, Judge Kubo made it a point to emphasize the importance of jury duty. He said, “It was so uncalled for…[t]he fairness of a trial is mandated and expected.” In consideration of Maldonado’s behavior and the judge’s comments, I thought it would be interesting to examine impermissible conduct of jurors.

(Source: https://ifonlysingaporeans.blogspot.com/2016/08/contempt-of-court-bill-passed-after.html)

In my research, I was surprised to learn that many courts had handbooks for jurors. Since the Maldonado situation occurred prior to the commencement of trial, I want to highlight common courtroom etiquette.

·      “Everyone in the court rises [when] the judge takes his or her place on the bench…A similar procedure is used when court adjourns.”

·      “Common courtesy and politeness are safe guides as to the way jurors should act.”

·      “No juror will be permitted to read a newspaper or magazine in the courtroom.”

·      “A [should not] juror carry on a conversation with another juror in the courtroom during the trial.”

·      Jurors will be treated with consideration for their comfort and convenience.”

·      “They should bring to the attention of the judge any matter affecting their service and should notify the court of any emergencies.”

So what happens when jurors are out of line?

Contempt of court is probably the most common offense. Contempt, either criminal or civil, is defined as “actions which either defy a court's authority, cast disrespect on a court, or impede the ability of the court to perform its function.” Punishment for contempt differs depending on the type of case.

For example, criminal contempt sanctions are geared toward punishing the act of contempt. On the other hand, “civil contempt sanctions aim to either: (1) restore the rights of the party who was wronged by the failure to satisfy the court's order; or (2) simply move an underlying proceeding along.” Regardless of criminal or civil contempt, actions under both can be punished by incarceration.

Next, disqualification is also an option. Jury misconduct can cause a juror to be banned from jury service for a number of years. Aside from contempt of court and disqualification, jurors can still be punished for other crimes in which they fit the bill.

Examples of Recent Misconduct

·      Juror researched the definition of reasonable doubt and distributed her findings to other jurors. The conviction was thrown out and a new trial was granted.

·      During deliberations, a juror talked about being a knife expert and also discussed his sexual fantasies.

·      Potential juror researched information about the defendant’s criminal history and the current case against the defendant.

The most important takeaway for potential jurors is to be diligent in abiding by court rules, so that you stay out of hot water.