Humanity
has given the term “nightmare” a range of definitions over the past three
hundred years. In the 1700s, an English dictionary
described a nightmare as “a disease when a man in his sleep supposes he has a
great weight laying upon him.” Today,
Merriam-Webster defines a nightmare as a frightening dream (or other
experience) of monstrous character. Sufferers
can generally soothe their terror by remembering the nightmare’s false nature, but
a sufferer has limited options when the nightmare-like experience is real.
When a juror cannot physically report
for duty without experiencing a logistical “nightmare,” it discourages jurors and lowers jury yield. Unfortunately, most
courthouses in highly populated areas operate in or near the center of downtown,
and many citizens anticipate that travel into downtown will feel nightmarish, even
in smaller cities. Unsurprisingly then, urban
areas have lower jury yields than rural areas.
People tend to avoid stress.
The root of the problem
Even if a
potential juror does manage to acquire transportation to the courthouse, travel
to downtown courthouses remains difficult.
Most people do not live in downtown areas, therefore travel takes time. Downtowns tend to densely pack city blocks
with intersections and stoplights, plus a variety of oddly placed and difficult-to-see
signs. Here’s an example of downtown
Dallas:
One-way
streets abound. Finding a parking space
at the courthouse sometimes seems impossible, and courthouses still charge for juror
parking. It all creates a high level of
stress that discourages people from feeling excited about something that could be
fun. To improve juror yield, our system
must change its paradigm. Lawmakers must
treat potential jurors like customers who have a choice (because they do have
the choice), instead of like soldiers who must follow orders.
Personalized rides can improve jury yield
A private
car service would provide the calmest, simplest transportation for jurors to
reach the courthouse. Today, this would
take the form of a pre-paid Uber/Lyft driver.
While this may sound unrealistic, the numbers say that the benefits might
outweigh the cost.
The price
The Dallas County courts pay jurors
six to ten dollars for the first day, then forty dollars per extra day thereafter. Federal courts start at fifty dollars per
day. In comparison, Google Maps shows that the farthest
point in Dallas County reaches about twenty-three miles from the downtown courthouse, and a twenty-one-mile Uber ride in Dallas costs
about thirty-five dollars. If each juror
requires a ride to and from the courthouse, the cost would reach an approximate
maximum of eighty dollars a day (rounding up). This
may seem high, but most jurors’ trips would cost much, much less as they live
progressively closer to downtown. The final price could be similar to current juror pay.
In
the best scenario, local governments would completely pay for the personalized
trips. If the local governments absolutely
cannot afford the cost, they could present jurors with an option to receive either
the standard daily juror pay or a complementary Uber/Lyft ride. As a final alternative, local governments
could subsidize part of the cost. For example,
the county could automatically apply a juror’s daily pay to the price of the
Uber ride, dramatically lowering the transportation cost for the summoned juror.
The benefit
If local
governments help jurors hire a personalized ride to court, juror yield will
rise because jurors will know that the system values them. Instead of receiving a de minimis paycheck
after the fact, jurors will receive an up-front perk that tangibly improves
their experience. Psychologically, jurors
will know that they can get to court without suffering. A juror’s time and energy expenditures will
lessen. Stress and anxiety will lessen.
The weight on a juror’s chest will lighten, and jurors can focus on the
positive aspects of doing their civic duty.
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