Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, September 26, 1994 TAG: 9409260057
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MARTHA SLUD ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Most Americans will be called to serve on a jury at some point in their lives. Many people view the experience with dread - often with valid reason, says Thomas L. Hafemeister, a senior staff attorney and psychologist at the National Center for State Courts in Williamsburg.
``We bring them in, pay them $15 or $20 a day and somehow, that's sufficient for disrupting their lives,'' said Hafemeister, who studies the effect of stress on jurors. ``I think we need to do much more to be sensitive to their needs.''
Hafemeister and other experts are exploring ways that courts can improve conditions for jurors.
Hafemeister says that people have always grumbled about being called, but more courts are reporting that it's getting harder to recruit jurors. He thinks the situation is the worst among professionals, minorities and those who live in urban areas.
Hafemeister said no one is quite sure why response to summonses is down in many jurisdictions. But he said the situation has led some courts to recognize that they need to make some reforms.
Basic reforms could include replacing splintery courtroom chairs and providing refreshments during deliberations. More substantial changes could include increasing daily payment and compensating jurors for child-care expenses.
There are no official statistics on the number of people who get out of jury duty simply because they do not want to serve because people rarely admit it, said Tom Munsterer, director of the Arlington-based Center for Jury Studies, which also is part of the national courts center.
And in many places, courts cannot afford to spend time tracking down people who do not respond to summonses, Munsterer said.
``Probably if you threw it away, nothing would happen in a lot of jurisdictions,'' he said.
More than 13 million people are called each year, but for a variety of reasons, only about 4.5 million people actually report to court, Munsterer said. Of those, about 1.5 million end up serving on juries, he said.
Hafemeister said that educating potential jurors about the court system is crucial.
Some people fear jury duty because they worry that defendants will try to retaliate against them, as depicted in Hollywood's new legal thriller, ``Trial by Jury.'' But that virtually never happens in real life, Hafemeister said.
``TV and movies have placed a fear in people's mind that this is what jury duty is like,'' he said.
Hafemeister says a more realistic complaint is that jury duty will be boring. He said many people anticipate the experience as several weeks of sitting around, drinking coffee and playing cards while attorneys and judges debate whether they actually will serve on the jury.
Many courts are switching from the traditional system of reporting every day for two weeks to reporting for one day, or the course of one trial, Hafemeister said.
``People didn't feel that their time was quite so crucial in the past,'' he said. ``Now, with so many single parents, taking them out of their routine causes havoc.''
Colorado instituted the one-day, one-trial policy statewide four years ago. Eighty percent of people end up serving just one day and that's greatly reduced complaints about service, said Erroll Giddings, a management analyst with the Colorado Judicial Department.
Colorado also has tightened its requirements for jurors to report and upgraded its computer system so it can send warning notices to no-shows, Giddings said. People only have a handful of reasons for not serving, such as not speaking English or a major family problem, he said.
Giddings said Colorado also has developed a video for jurors that explains why they were chosen and what their responsibilities will be. That kind of attention to jurors before trials begin is important, Munsterer said.
Hafemeister said it also is important in some instances to counsel jurors after a trial has ended. He has participated in several debriefing sessions for jurors who have been through traumatic trials involving grisly evidence.
Having a judge or another court official spend a few minutes answering questions after a trial can make a big difference in helping jurors deal with what went on in the courtroom, he said.
Hafemeister said, however, that even if jury duty is an inconvenience and a burden, most people emerge from the experience with a positive opinion about the judicial process and their role in it.
``It really is an opportunity to participate firsthand in the American legal system,'' he said. ``You talk to jurors years after jury duty and it's still one of the most vivid experiences they have.''
by CNB