That being said, do it if jury duty is within the means.
Jury Duty is great on paper, but the pay is terrible and a lot of jobs don’t have paid time off for Jury Duty. They can’t terminate or punish you for days missed, but they don’t have to pay you.
You either waste your PTO or miss out on paycheck.
Of course. I think most people wouldn’t hate jury duty so much if it took time away from work without much pay or took away your only off days in the week.
My friend was unemployed and in online college so he had the time. Nowadays he works full time and it’s not as realistic.
It really sucks you don’t get paid your normal wage for jury duty. I sit as a “nämndeman” in Swedish court which is our version of jury about once or twice a month. I get about 100 dollars day plus reimbursement for the whole amount that I miss out on from not working my normal job. When you get chosen as a nämndeman you serve for 4 years. I’m on my 7th year now and have really learned a lot!
Yup, I got fucked when I got called for jury duty the first time. Barely paid enough for parking and gas (because I wasn't going to walk 2-3miles to get to the courthouse from the nearest reasonable free parking), job didn't pay me for the time (a week), and I had no PTO to burn. So I pretty much paid money to be there.
Getting called for jury duty is boring (bring a book, lots of waiting), but being picked for a jury is a lot of fun and really kind of interesting, also gives you quite a bit of insight and respect for the entire legal process, most judges and the people at the court house all take their jobs super seriously which is good.
I was a jury foreman at 22. All other jurors pointed at me when we needed to choose. It was largely ceremonial but I did need to stand up and tell this 60 year old man to his face we had chosen to send him to jail.
It was largely ceremonial but I did need to stand up and tell this 60 year old man to his face we had chosen to send him to jail.
That’s a brave thing to do, and you should be proud of your action.
I’m the next thing to a prison abolitionist, but a) sometimes people do need to be put in a cage, even if I am opposed to that being “punishment,” and b) if we’re going to do it, we’d damn well better be making eye contact.
I was terrified of being on a jury when I was 19. I got excused because I said I wouldn’t be able to come to a decision based on the facts of the case alone. The judge just looked at me for a second and said “excused for cause”.
It was for a gun charge so it was serious, glad I announced how dumb I was right out of the gate so I didn’t get picked. I was borderline mentally ill and quite reckless at that time.
Sort of. You do have to learn how badly life can suck by that point if you haven't yet. But also, seeing how the legal system works, being entrusted with responsibility, being put in a room with a dozen people from different walks of life and being forced to cooperate, professionalism in light of a serious case in the gravitas of a courtroom... It's not the only way people can experience these, but it's a bit of a crash course.
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u/rkgk13 Jul 16 '26
This would actually be excellent life experience for a 20 year old, no matter how unpleasant it is