The Right to Jury Duty

The Right to Jury Duty

Before 1972, those who owned their own home and were over a rateable

value were eligible for jury service. The Morris Committee in 1965,

estimated 78% of names on the electoral register didn't qualify for

jury service, 95% of women were also ineligible, either because they

lived in rented accommodation or were wives.

The committee recommended the right to do jury service should

correspond with the right to vote. That reform was brought in by the

Criminal Justice Act 1972 and can also be found in the Juries Act

1974.

To be eligible for jury service you must be aged between 18-70, you

must be registered on the electoral register and must have lived in

the United Kingdom, Channel Islands or Isle of Man for at least five

years since the age of thirteen.

Some people will automatically be disqualified from jury service these

include; people who have been sentenced to prison or a young offenders

institute, someone who has received a community rehabilitation order.

There are also people who are ineligible for jury service, ineligible

is where people cannot do jury service for certain reasons for

example; people who suffer from mental illnesses, priests, monks and

nuns and people on bail.

M.P.S, people in the armed forces, doctors and nurses, and people over

the age of 65 may be excused as a right. This may be because they have

duties, which are considered to be more important to the public i.e.,

rather than being at jury service a doctor could be saving somebody 's

life.

Discretionary excusal is a process where the judge will excuse people

for certain reasons these may be that the juror will be away at the

time of the trial, the juror may have childcare problems and the juror

may have problems with the accused. The judge would usually defer the

juror rather than totally excuse the juror until the juror can

continue with jury service.

There is also a term called discharge, this is where there is doubt