Jury Duty: Reduced to a Punch Line?

The American Public has made up their minds when it comes to jury duty: they would do almost anything to get out of it.  Television shows, such as "30 Rock," have their characters come up with and use elaborate and comical ways of getting out of jury duty.  Social media and the internet are littered with countless tales of the various, and sometimes ridiculous, ways people have gotten out of jury duty.  Simply googling how to get out of jury duty can provide countless tips and tricks to avoid this civil service.  It seems as though the American juror is not seen as an honored citizen participating in one of our branches of government.  Instead, they are simply seen as a "sucker" who could not come up with an elaborate scheme to avoid service.

However, serving on a jury is not a joke to some.  To some people, serving on a jury allowed that person to feel like they had a real and true impact as a citizen of the United States, even more of an impact than voting.  We are taught from a very young age the importance of voting and the impact our vote can have on our nation, but the same does not go for serving on jury duty.  Voting is portrayed as a civil act that captures the attention of others and often receives admiration.  Jury duty is reduced to something that should be avoided.  However, jurors wield a civil power unlike any other.  Serving on a jury allows a citizen to become a crucial part of our judicial system.  Jurors have the ability to bring justice to a family, hold a corrupt business liable, and even make their own community safer in a matter of days.

Both social and institutional changes are necessary to change the public perception of jury duty.  Jurors should take pride in their service on a jury and share their positive experiences.  Stories of people like the one in the linked article should be shared, rather than having the process be made fun of and portrayed as something to be avoided.  Jurors should receive praise for sacrificing a significant amount of time to participate in this civic duty.  The stigma that jury duty should be avoided can be eliminated if we treat those who serve as people who made an impact as a citizen of the United States.  Similarly, changes are necessary to the institution of the court as well.  Changes, such as providing other governmental services while jurors wait, increased pay, and "one-day trials" could increase turnout and provide a more pleasant experience for those who are called to serve.

After conducting my juror interview, and after discussing in class some of the negative perceptions about jury duty, it seemed as though the negatives surrounding jury duty would always outweigh the positives.  However, simply recognizing jurors as making an impact similar to that of a voter could increase participation and transform the perception of jury service from a joke and something to be avoided into a respected and praised civic duty.