Jury Duty Instructions
Kitsap County Juror Call In Recording:
360-337-7072
Or Toll Free: 1-800-562-5953
Juror Call-In Procedure:
-
Call each
evening beginning the weekend of your term of service.
The recorded message plays 24 hours per day
beginning at 6:00 pm on Friday.
-
Listen for your
group number, rather than your bar-coded number.
Only if your group number is listed on the recorded
message will you be required to report.
-
In case of inclement
weather, call the message line for possible changes in
reporting time.
About Your Jury Summons:
At first glance, your
summons looks like an awful lot of work in order to complete
the questions. It’s not quite as difficult as it first
appears. Please read the following information prior to
calling the office with your question. If you still don’t
understand, our staff is happy to assist you over the phone.
Before you begin
completing your profile, we would ask that you not
use light-colored or fluorescent ink pens. Black ink is
best. A portion of this document is scanned and some ink
colors do not reproduce well.
When returning
your profile, please use a small portion of standard tape
for sealing. Black electrical tape, for instance, is
difficult to remove and often destroys the document.
Thank you.
The top portion is
basically your name, term of service (dates), group number
and your parking permit.
Below the first
perforation are the qualifications necessary in order to
serve as a juror. If you answer no to any
of the qualifications, sign and date the bottom of the
summons, provide your current address (if you have moved out
of the county) and return your summons by mail.
If you qualify for
jury service, you must complete the middle portion of the
front page before returning it. This information is provided
to the attorneys in the courtroom for use during the
questioning process. (Your home phone number and address are
removed for privacy).
When you have
completed the front page, tear off and retain the top
portion. You will need it for information as well as for
your parking permit. Mail the remainder of the summons.
The top portion includes phone
numbers, call-in procedures and court locations.
The portion below
the perforation is completed only if you are
requesting an exemption. Example: To reschedule your term of
service date, state that you already served within the year,
or if you have chronic ill health and need to be excused.
NOTE: If
you are requesting an exemption on this page, you must still
complete the front page prior to returning your summons.
Please remember
that if you do not receive confirmation by mail changing
your original summons’ term, then you must call in as
instructed.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What if
I no longer live in Kitsap County?
Indicate that information in the
upper portion of the front page where it says
“qualifications”. At the bottom, sign, date and enclose
your new address. Return your summons by mail. You need not
fill out any further information. You will receive written
confirmation that you have been excused.
What if I have served within the past 12 months?
Complete the front page.
Indicate on the back page (in the exemptions portion) that
you have served within the past year and return your summons
by mail. This information will be verified in our office
and you will be notified by mail that either a) you did in
fact serve recently and you will be excused or b) we find no
record of recent service and you must report on the date
indicated on your summons.
What if
I suffer from chronic ill health?
Complete the front page. On the
back page indicate your health concerns in the exemptions
portion and return your summons by mail. You will be
notified in writing as to whether or not you are excused.
What if I am going out of town during my term of service?
Complete
the front page. On the back page in the exemptions portion,
check the box that asks that your term of service be
re-scheduled to another week. You may pick the week. Mail
in your summons, retaining the top portion. You will be
notified in writing that your term of service has been
changed and what the date is.
What if my loved one receives a summons and they have passed
away?
Write
the information somewhere on the summons and return the
summons by mail. You need not complete any other
information.
What if I just simply do not have the time to serve or
cannot afford it?
The jury
clerks are limited as to what conditions they may excuse a
juror. If you feel that you have financial or work-related
hardship cases, you must report for jury duty if called and
ask the Judge to excuse you at the time of jury selection.
What if I lose my
summons?
Call the
jury clerk as soon as possible at 360-337-7166 (option 6)
and ask for another summons.
Why
do I get summoned more than once a year?
Jurors are randomly selected
from a pool of voter registration records and Department of
Licensing records. Though every effort has been made to
avoid selecting individuals more than once per year, it
sometimes does occur. The main reason is that your name may
appear differently on your voter’s registration than it does
on your driver’s license. Example: Johnny Smith and John
Smith. The computer selects these as two different people.
Another example would be that when a woman marries, perhaps
she changes her driver’s license, but not her voter’s
registration.
We
apologize when you are summoned twice in a given year;
however, it is unavoidable. The best help you could give us
is to ensure that your names are the same on both records. |
