Audio video recording produced by the Office of the Jury Commissioner in association with the Boston Neighborhood Network. Transcript produced by Approved Court Transcriber Donna H. Dominguez. For more information visit our website JuryDuty.MAjury.gov or call 1-800-THE-JURY, 1-800-843-5879.
Executive Producer: Pamela J. Wood, Jury Commissioner for the Commonwealth
Producer: Michael Ryan, Communications Coordinator, Office of Jury Commissioner
Directors: Cullen Cockrell, Theji Jayaratne, and David Palomares, BNN
Studio Manager: David A. Palomares, BNN
Project Manager/Editor: Gregory W.R. Fulchino, Office of Jury Commissioner
“Jury Duty” was produced in association with the Boston Neighborhood Network, 3025 Washington Street, Roxbury, Massachusetts 02119.
Copyright 2015/2016 [Episodes 01-11/Episode 12] - the Office of the Jury Commissioner for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 560 Harrison Avenue - Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts 02118. Website: MAjury.gov.
CAPTION: Jury Duty, Michael Ryan, Host
MICHAEL RYAN, BNN LIVE HOST: Hello. My name is Mike Ryan. The name of the show is Jury Duty: You Make a Difference on BNN, the show that should answer all your questions about the one day, one trial jury system.
HOST RYAN: Todays guests are Jennifer Shaw, Operations Manager at the Office of Jury Commissioner, and Richard Graham, Field Support Analyst for the Office of Jury Commissioner. Welcome. Thank you both --
MS. SHAW: Thank you.
MR. GRAHAM: Thank you.
MS. SHAW: Thank you, Mike.
HOST RYAN: -- for being on the show. Jen is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts in Boston with a degree in Criminal Justice, and she has worked at the Office of Jury Commissioner since 2009. Richard is a graduate of Assumption College with a degree in Criminal Justice. He has been with us for ten years, started off in the jury call center, moved on to the legal department, and is currently in the IT department. And it is appropriate, since we want to talk about the jury call center which you supervise and you graduated from, do you get a warm body when you call the jury call center?
MS. SHAW: We absolute, you absolutely get a warm body every time during our business hours that you call the 1-800-THE-JURY telephone number. Believe it or not, there are some people who are not happy to see that they have a juror summons in the mail, and they have some questions in regards to their jury duty. They may never have been to a courthouse before. They may be nervous when they see a juror summons, and immediately their first response is to pick up the phone and call us. So yes, there is nothing worse than calling an 800 number and having to type in a whole bunch of numbers before you actually get a live person. Fortunately, we don’t have that in the call center. Jurors will call, and if there’s not a representative available, they will sit in a cue, and they will just hear basically their wait time and how long that they have to wait, and that’s it. They don’t have press in any numbers. And then once an operator becomes available, they’ll, they’ll take the call.
HOST RYAN: What are the hours of operation for the jury call center?
MS. SHAW: The call center is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30, and you will get a live speaking person on the other end when you call during those hours.
HOST RYAN: And when’s the best, is there a best time to call the 800 number?
MS. SHAW: There are definitely times when the call volumes are higher than, than, than others. If you call Monday morning at 9 a.m., that’s probably our highest volume. Definitely towards the end of the day, right around 3 p.m., that’s also when we have a high call volume because people have called to see if they need to go in to the courthouse, and now they need to call us because they have some type of situation come up. But --
MR. GRAHAM: Tuesdays after long weekends.
MS. SHAW: Tuesdays after a long weekend definitely. Fridays are typically a slower day. The, you know, there are not as many jurors scheduled on a Friday, so if you can hold off and call us on a Friday, you definitely have less of a, less of a wait time. We do typically answer all calls on average within two minutes, so.
HOST RYAN: That’s good response.
MS. SHAW: Yeah. Yeah.
HOST RYAN: About how many calls do you average to the call center every day?
MS. SHAW: On a daily basis, we get anywhere between 900 to 1200 calls per day depending on the day. And it’s, you know, you never know what, what, what kind of calls that you’re, you’re going to get, and it’s, it’s great that we actually have people there and are available to still answer and, and speak to people.
HOST RYAN: Rich, you started in the jury call center. How do you handle difficult calls?
MR. GRAHAM: The best, best thing to do is hear the person out. Usually, you know, they’ll, they’ll have some complaints or maybe don’t want to go in at all, but if you listen to, to what they’re saying, there’s usually something that you can offer to kind of ease their frustration, maybe transfer to a different location, explain how to do that, pick a, you know a day that’s going to work better for them. Generally Courts bring in jurors Monday through Thursday for the most part so you can, you know, you can find a wide variety of days to, to help them out.
HOST RYAN: What’s the most common question you would, you would hear in the jury call center?
MR. GRAHAM: Probably why do I get called every year and my neighbor never gets called.
HOST RYAN: And why would, why would people ask that kind of question?
MR. GRAHAM: I, I think a lot of people, if, especially if you’re, you know, frustrated about getting the summons, you, you have a tendency to over-exaggerate when your last summons was. Generally, if you look the person up, they probably haven't been called for four or five years.
HOST RYAN: So you need, you need the patience of a saint to deal with some of the jurors?
MS. SHAW: Well, you have to have empathy.
HOST RYAN: Empathy, yeah.
MS. SHAW: I mean people have, you know, stressful lives. They could be dealing with a sick child, a sick parent, or sick themselves, you know, and you have to, I tell all of the call center representatives, put yourself in that person’s shoes and, you know, be empathetic and, and everybody has something that they, they can, they can, they understand and, and are probably going through a situation similar to what the juror calling in is going to, so.
MR. GRAHAM: We’ve all been on the other side of the, of the 800 number, so.
MS. SHAW: Yes.
HOST RYAN: Everybody’s --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: Now, can you call after hours the 800 number?
MS. SHAW: You can call after hours. There’s a, a bunch of pre-recorded messages depending upon what your need is that you can kind of scroll through and, and punch numbers through. Or the best way to get in touch with us is to go on our website and go in and log in with your badge and pin number and zip code. You can request a disqualification. You can confirm. You can request a hardship transfer if you need to transfer your location if you have a valid hardship reason. Or you can email us. There’s also a link to our email if you have, you know, a specific question and the call center operators are, it’s not during business hours, you can absolutely send us an email with your information and we’ll get back to you.
HOST RYAN: And then --
MR. GRAHAM: You can go on the website to postpone, you’ll get a calendar of all available days so it, you know, you’ll know what --
HOST RYAN: You can pretty much do almost any kind of transaction on the website?
MS. SHAW: Definitely.
HOST RYAN: And what is that address?
MS. SHAW: It’s MAJury.gov, and you want to click on the link that says respond to your summons online. And like Rich says, yeah, there’s a great feature. It’s an actual calendar, and people can go in and, and choose their own date which day works better for them depending on their own schedule.
HOST RYAN: Do I have to give a reason to postpone?
MR. GRAHAM: You can postpone any time within 12 months of your original date. So say you were summonsed for January 2nd, 2016. You have till January 2nd, 2017 to serve. So as long as the, as long as the Court has, you know, jurors on the date that you want, you, you can pick your date, and no reason required.
HOST RYAN: So we don’t, you don’t need a, you don’t have to need a reason to just say gee, I’d like another date.
MS. SHAW: No.
HOST RYAN: And you say on the interactive website, you’d actually see the, the calendar of available dates?
MS. SHAW: Yes. Yup, and if a date is not available, it will not allow you to choose it, and then you can just, you know, change the month, go to the next month. You can go from 2015 to 2016 if there’s a month in 2016 that works better for you. If you’re a teacher and you want to select a date say over the summer and not miss out on a school day, then you can, you can absolutely do that. So people really, really like the, the website option.
MR. GRAHAM: And you’ll get a confirmation email and, you know, next day, and you’ll be good to go.
HOST RYAN: What’s the average length of stay in the, for the jury?
MS. SHAW: As far as how long jurors --
HOST RYAN: Yeah. How are they, how many days would they serve typically?
MS. SHAW: Typically, most jurors are done in one day, about 90 percent of our jurors finish their, their juror service. It’s one day or one trial. Like I tell everyone who calls in that may have a concern, the Judge will absolutely let everybody know how long the trial is going to be, and anyone who has a hardship with that length of that trial and has a valid reason can, can speak to the Judge at that time. So.
HOST RYAN: So only the Judge in the courtroom then could dismiss somebody or retain somebody for jury duty?
MS. SHAW: Yes.
HOST RYAN: What about if I have trouble with English? Are there bilingual operators at the jury call center?
MR. GRAHAM: We have a number of a Spanish speakers. That’s generally the, the most common --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: -- language aside from English. But we, we do have someone who speaks --
MS. SHAW: Creole.
MR. GRAHAM: We have Creole.
HOST RYAN: Creole.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: So, you know, we do, we do the best we can to, to accommodate anybody that does call or, or come in.
MS. SHAW: Yeah. For a small office, we’re very fortunate to have four or five different bilingual speakers, so it works out great.
HOST RYAN: What about people who may be hearing impaired and can't use the telephone? How --
MR. GRAHAM: There’s a relay service that generally people who are hard of hearing or deaf jurors can use to, to contact our office. It basically goes through an operator. The operator speaks to the person in the phone room, and then the operator relays the message to the deaf juror. The TTY which is, it’s kind of a texting system, they, they can also use that. That’s available to them.
HOST RYAN: What about parents of small children, are they exempt from jury duty?
MR. GRAHAM: No one’s exempt, not based on, you know, what you do or things like that. So parents of small children would still have to go. We again are, are flexible with, you know, helping you find a day that, that works for you, whether it be the day of the week or a certain month.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: So don’t bring your children to jury duty?
MS. SHAW: No.
MR. GRAHAM: You will be sent home.
MS. SHAW: Yes. Yes.
And that’s, I mean that’s typical, that’s a lot of calls that we do. Parents of students, they’re upset that their, you know, their child is in college and, and have been summonsed for jury duty. We work with all the colleges in the State of Massachusetts and advise them that, you know, students are going to be summonsed for jury duty, and it’s important that that not be held against them during their class schedules. You know, callers that have young children, some, and have difficulties with daycare that, and, you know, someone that may have a medical issue or a concern going on, we hear all kinds of --
MR. GRAHAM: Again --
MS. SHAW: -- all kind --
MR. GRAHAM: Again, students, you can find days towards the beginning or the end of the semester --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: -- where classes are light, work load’s light. If, you know, if it’s a single, single parent situation, you can, you know, maybe find someone, a time of the year where other family will be in town. So.
HOST RYAN: The minimum age for jury duty is?
MS. SHAW: 18.
HOST RYAN: 18. So someone in high school and college could get called for jury and would be eligible?
MS. SHAW: Yes.
MR. GRAHAM: As long as you’re 18 by the day you are called for.
MS. SHAW: Yes. You could receive a summons in the mail while you’re still 17, but your birthday is, is up and coming, and you’re summons is for a date after your birthday --
HOST RYAN: Your birthday.
MS. SHAW: -- has passed, and you, and you’re already 18.
HOST RYAN: What about kids who come to study in the, in Massachusetts for college or university? Are they eligible for jury duty here in the Bay State?
MS. SHAW: Yes.
MR. GRAHAM: Still eligible. You’re considered an inhabitant of the state. Again, the, the jury is, is designed to represent the community.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: So college students obviously are a big representative of that community, especially colleges like UMass Amherst. And they, you know, they make up probably 70 percent of the population out there when they’re in session. So to exclude such a large population would --
MS. SHAW: It wouldn't be representative.
HOST RYAN: If I came from the Boston area and I went to a school like UMass Amherst, could I get a jury summons here in Boston and one out where UMass Amherst is?
MS. SHAW: Yes.
MR. GRAHAM: There is double dipping.
HOST RYAN: But you, but you only have to serve one though, right?
MS. SHAW: Correct.
HOST RYAN: So --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: But if you get your summons in the school, you have to serve it where your school is, correct?
MS. SHAW: Yes, wherever your summonsed first.
MR. GRAHAM: It can't be transferred out of county. We can transfer your, your Court within the county, but you can't be transferred out of the county.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: What about handicap accessibility? Are most of the courthouses equipped to deal with people who may have mobility issues?
MS. SHAW: Yes, definitely. There are some locations that are better equipped. You know, there are still some courthouses that are fairly old and are, are not as up to date as some of the newer courthouses. And that’s definitely where you want to call our call center operators and get in touch with someone and figure out, you know, people have questions. How far is it from the parking lot to the front door? How far do I have to walk? It’s just not only, you know, people that are in wheel chairs. There’s other people that may have limited mobility as far as walking, or if they need to bring needles if you’re a diabetic, you can absolutely, we have a great ADA coordinators within our office. They’ll, they’ll take any requests.
HOST RYAN: People can bring food if they need to have food?
MS. SHAW: Yup, yup. Any type of reasonable accommodation that, that we can accommodate, definitely. So you want, anyone who has any type of ADA concern would, would want to call our office and, and see if there’s a courthouse that would work better for them within their county.
HOST RYAN: So if somebody, or what would you tell jurors as far as the length of the day, should they have to be comfortable sitting for a couple of hours? Is that the baseline you use?
MS. SHAW: Yes. So I mean Court hours are basically jurors are summonsed to come in either at 8 or 8:30. Most Court business is done by 4 or 4:30. It, it all depends. Again, if you have some type of discomfort and, and not, not the ability to be able to sit for that long, that’s definitely something that, you know, you can call us, and, and we can talk over. And some people may need to get a doctor’s letter to be excused from serving if they, if they just, if they can't do it, if they, if they have that severe of a medical condition that, yes, they can't sit for that long of a, of a time period.
HOST RYAN: Rich, what should I, what should I wear for jury duty? Do I, do I need to wear a tie?
MR. GRAHAM: There’s nothing set in stone that says what you need to wear. But it’s, it’s serious business, so you should dress accord --
HOST RYAN: Business.
MR. GRAHAM: -- to the business that’s going to be conducted. So basically, we, we would advise people business casual.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: You don’t want to show up in ripped jeans or, you know, something inappropriate written on a t-shirt.
HOST RYAN: Jurors have been sent home, have they not, that are --
MS. SHAW: Yes.
HOST RYAN: -- dressed inappropriately --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: -- for jury duty?
MS. SHAW: I mean during the summer, you know, there’s some Courts that, you know, they won't accept you if you have flip flops and shorts and, and tank tops on. Jury duty is a, is a serious business, and if your family member was the one who was being charged with a crime, you, I’m sure you would want the jurors that are sitting on your own trial or a family member’s trial to dress in a, in a, in a business like fashion and in a, in an appropriate way. So, yes, some of them have been sent home.
HOST RYAN: What’s generally the biggest complaint about jury duty that you receive at the office from jurors? Length?
MR. GRAHAM: Probably, yeah, either length or downtime.
HOST RYAN: Yeah.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: When you go, there, there, there could be some downtime, and I think a lot of people don’t understand why when they first get there, they’re --
HOST RYAN: Hustled in.
MR. GRAHAM: -- sit, well, they’re sitting for like a long period of time.
HOST RYAN: Right.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: They don’t, they don’t see what’s going on behind the scenes in the courtroom with the parties and the Judge working out motions and things along those lines. So it, I think if you don’t know what’s, you know, what’s happening, you can get a little frustrated. So I think in, I think by and large though, the, the jury pool officers do a good job of trying to keep the jurors informed and kind of where, where things are and, you know, whether or not they’ll be needed, how many cases they’re still waiting to hear back from. So.
MS. SHAW: Yeah. And there's been a huge change within the past ten years, you know, with the Judges and our office and the administrative office to make sure that jurors are only brought in on the days that they’re, they’re actually needed. Our goal is to get every juror into a courtroom. There are unfortunately going to be some days where the case will settle and a juror won't be able to get to a courtroom. But the juror has, just being there has made, has made, made a difference so.
MR. GRAHAM: We hear that from Judges a lot, that when jurors are, you know, ready to go and, and present, a lot of times that can make someone take a plea.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: So.
HOST RYAN: Just the presence of jurors --
MS. SHAW: Just the presence.
HOST RYAN: -- leads to resolution.
MS. SHAW: Yeah. Yeah.
HOST RYAN: So what should jurors expect, Jen, when they, they come into their courthouse? What, is there some sort of a routine when they check in for juror service?
MS. SHAW: There is. So every juror who is scheduled will receive a, a reminder notice about ten days ahead of their scheduled date. That reminder notice will have a number that they need to call the night before. It will have a map and directions to the courthouse, the time that they need to be there, the location of the jury pool room that they’re going. When they come into the courthouse in the morning, they’ll, they’ll go through security. And then head on up to their, their, their jury pool, wherever that’s located, and they’ll be checked in by a Court officer and given attendance in the system. And then the Court officer will greet the jurors and tell them a little bit about their day, where, you know, the logistics of the building, where the, the restrooms are, if there’s any vending machines or water if, or if juror has any, you know, specific needs. And then --
HOST RYAN: No smoking though, right?
MS. SHAW: No smoking, no.
And then the jurors will watch about a 20 minute orientation video that tells them just a little bit more about jury duty. And then a Judge will come down and, and welcome them, and they’ll proceed about their day.
HOST RYAN: So you advise that they, people should bring in reading materials --
MR. GRAHAM: Ab --
HOST RYAN: -- and can they bring in elec --
MS. SHAW: Absolutely.
HOST RYAN: Can they bring in electronic devices?
MR. GRAHAM: Absolutely. Bring, bring read, reading materials, and the Court, as long as you have your juror summons with you, the Court will allow you to come in with your cell phone. You --
MS. SHAW: And laptop.
MR. GRAHAM: Yeah.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: You’ll see, you’ll see the, the sign outside of most courthouses that said no elect, electronics. But as long as you have your summons there and you’re there for jury duty, they’ll --
MS. SHAW: You let front, the front security know that you’re a juror. They will allow you in. And many, many people bring in, you know, Kindles, and laptops. We’re in a technology --
HOST RYAN: But no Wi-Fi?
MS. SHAW: No Wi-Fi, no Wi-Fi yet.
HOST RYAN: Yet.
MS. SHAW: Hopefully, hopefully in the future, that’s something that, that we can offer. But people can bring their own Wi-Fi with them if they have it, and you know, there’s certain courthouses that have locations that have little desks set aside or an area for people to be able to set up their laptop or read a book.
MR. GRAHAM: Most smartphones can be used as a hotspot too, so I mean you can hook that up to your laptop and then connect to the internet that way. So.
HOST RYAN: Okay. That’s a way to do that. But the warning is that once jurors go into the courtroom?
MS. SHAW: Everything needs to be shut off.
HOST RYAN: Everything needs to be shut off. Okay.
MS. SHAW: Yes.
HOST RYAN: So --
MS. SHAW: Absolutely.
MR. GRAHAM: And they are strict about that.
MS. SHAW: Definitely, yeah.
MS. SHAW: Some of the courthouses try to provide magazines. You know, there are some that are there for people to be able to read. But definitely bring something with you to, to keep you occupied. It just helps, helps the day move along.
HOST RYAN: Rich, you worked in the legal department. Dare I ask what happens if I don’t go to my jury duty?
MR. GRAHAM: First thing that will happen, you’ll get a failed to appear notice, a gentle reminder that you forgot about your day. And --
HOST RYAN: So, and when do you, when would I get that I if didn't go to jury duty?
MR. GRAHAM: Generally a week to ten days after you missed it. It gives the phone number, 1-800-THE-JURY. It tells you to call and reschedule. If you don’t call and reschedule, at some point in the future, you would get a delinquency notice, a more stern reminder that you forgot about your day.
HOST RYAN: And how, how much time do I have to resolve my juror delinquency with --
MR. GRAHAM: So the delinquency notice gives you 30 days --
HOST RYAN: 30 days.
MR. GRAHAM: -- from the date that it’s mailed. And, so.
HOST RYAN: And what if I was foolish enough and I didn't, didn't respond to that?
MR. GRAHAM: Or didn't receive it in the mail?
HOST RYAN: Or didn't receive it in the mail.
MR. GRAHAM: Yeah. And then you would get an application for a criminal complaint in the mail which would basically give you a show cause hearing date.
HOST RYAN: That's a Court document, correct?
MR. GRAHAM: Yes, it is. And so it gives you a date and a time to show up for a hearing with a legal counsel and the, the Clerk of the Court. And generally when you go to the hearing, the legal counsel will either explain what you need to do to be disqualified or will give you, reschedule your date while you’re there, and then give you the instructions to call the night before, same as a normal juror would. If you don’t show up at the hearing --
HOST RYAN: Or don’t adhere to the terms of the hearing.
MR. GRAHAM: -- they would schedule you for an arraignment, and again, if you miss the arraignment, they, most Courts will issue a warrant.
HOST RYAN: And that takes quite a few pieces of mail to get somebody to the warrant --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: -- stage, correct?
MR. GRAHAM: It does. I mean the ultimate goal is to get people in there to serve. It’s not to, you know, punish you, or, you know, make your life miserable. It’s just to get you in there to serve and get a, get a result.
HOST RYAN: So pretty much --
MS. SHAW: Or, yeah, I mean respond. I mean --
HOST RYAN: Right. So --
MS. SHAW: -- if, if you have moved out of the county, no longer live in the county, if you’re not a citizen. A lot of people will get that notice and say, oh, that doesn't apply to me, I’m, I’m not a citizen. We don’t know that, and at any time, anyone can become a citizen so you, they also become eligible to serve. We just need people to respond and, and let us know what their status is. Don’t, don’t ignore your juror summons.
MR. GRAHAM: Yeah.
HOST RYAN: Right. So respond to every juror summons that you receive in the mail.
MS. SHAW: Yes.
MR. GRAHAM: Which goes along, just because you sent in a doctor’s letter in the past or in the past you’ve told us you’re not a citizen, that doesn't mean the condition hasn’t changed. You may have became a citizen.
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: Or you --
HOST RYAN: Your health may have revived.
MR. GRAHAM: Exactly, so.
HOST RYAN: So, and basically, it’s pretty simple, either show up where you can pretty much be done in one day.
MS. SHAW: Uh-huh.
HOST RYAN: Or send us proof of disqualification. So that leads us to what are the ten major disqualifications from jury service?
MS. SHAW: The ten are non-citizen.
HOST RYAN: So you’d have to provide --
MS. SHAW: Your alien ID --
HOST RYAN: Okay.
MS. SHAW: -- a copy of your green card. Or if you are over the age of 70 and choose not to serve. We have jurors that are over 70 and, and can still serve if they want to. If you’re under the age of 18. If you do not speak English. If you have moved outside of the county. If you are an active military serving member. If you are a convicted felon within the past seven years. If you’ve previously served within the past three years either federal or state jury duty, you're, you’re not, you’re not on the hook to serve again. You have that three year disqualification window. If you have a medical condition, and you provide a doctor’s letter. Or if you’re a primary caregiver for someone in your household who’s, who you’re taking care of that is sick that would suffer if you left them to go for juror service. Those are the, those are the ten disqualifications.
HOST RYAN: And they have to be, there has to be proof. You just can't say I’m not a citizen and, everything has to be validated, correct?
MS. SHAW: Yeah. Yes.
HOST RYAN: Great.
MS. SHAW: Yeah, except for over 70. We have, we have everyone, those are my, those are my favorite phone calls --
MR. GRAHAM: Yeah.
MS. SHAW: -- to get because --
HOST RYAN: Now, if they come, we’d like to have them for their wisdom and experience?
MS. SHAW: Absolutely. Yeah, I encourage them.
MR. GRAHAM: But if they call and they don’t want to come, they, you can disqualify them. It’s quick, easy, and they leave, they hang up happy so.
MS. SHAW: Yes, very happy.
HOST RYAN: Do the happy dance. So are citizens who are summonsed in for jury service in Mass, should they expect good service and hopefully have a, a positive experience?
MS. SHAW: They should, and I definitely hope so from the minute that they call our office. The call center is the backbone of our office. We are, you know, the first initial contact with most of the jurors. A lot of them have never even seen the inside of a courtroom. So we try to be as professional and, and as, as helpful as we can. And yes --
MR. GRAHAM: Understanding.
MS. SHAW: And understanding and sympathetic and empathetic, and, and help, you know, whatever situation that they’re dealing with. And, yes, when they go to the courthouse, we also want them to have a, a good experience. And it’s something that we continue to work on. There’s a survey on our website. Jurors are, are encouraged to go to our website, and, MAJury.Gov, and, and click on the link for the survey and tell us how we’re doing. Let us know, most jurors that serve have a, have a great experience.
MR. GRAHAM: We understand that things come up. Certain seasons are bad depending on your profession, if, you know --
MS. SHAW: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: -- if you’re a tax person --
HOST RYAN: True.
MR. GRAHAM: -- that, you know, April and, and March are probably not a great time for you.
MS. SHAW: Right.
HOST RYAN: Yeah.
MR. GRAHAM: SO you know, we’re, we try to be as understanding and, and helpful as possible. We can suggest things based on, you know, the years and things that we’ve seen. So.
HOST RYAN: So customer service is job number one?
MS. SHAW: Definitely.
HOST RYAN: Well, we’ve run out of time. We’d like to thank you for joining us today on Jury Duty: You Make a Difference on BNN. Just remember, if you have any questions about your jury service, you can always contact us online at --
MS. SHAW: 1-800-843-5879.
HOST RYAN: Or?
MS. SHAW: To call us.
MR. GRAHAM: Or --
HOST RYAN: Or online.
MS. SHAW: Or online.
MR. GRAHAM: MAJury.Gov.
MS. SHAW: Yes.
HOST RYAN: So just remember you do make a difference. Please serve when called. It’s important to all of us. Thank you, Jen.
MS. SHAW: Thank you.
HOST RYAN: Thank you, Rich.
MR. GRAHAM: Thank you.
HOST RYAN: And thank you at home.
Contact
Phone
Monday-Friday 9 am - 4:30 pm