@SnoopSister :
I have only been called twice and served once. The case was really boring. This guy was a registered predator and registered without a problem for 10 years then decided he was done registering after 10 years. We had to decide if he was guilty of not registering and then give him prison time if found guilty. The prosecution was amazing but the defense was very lackluster. My mom on the other hand was called every 6 months from my 11th birthday to my early twenties and she would get selected every single time. Every one after I turned 16 was a sequestered jury. She finally asked the balliff how to get out of jury duty and he told her. Once she tried it, she never had to serve again.

@mom2mms : You've always been able to claim exemption for 2 years if you've actually served on a jury.

@ParksideRes :
That's good to know. I won't be able to serve for 7 more years (my son is too little) but I actually enjoyed it.

I was a juror on a criminal trial about 20 years ago - Harris County. The accused was on trial for armed robbery of a convenience store. The store clerk identified the suspect, and the police picked him up less than 30 minutes after the crime, and he had on him the money that he took from the store. The trial didn't last long. We had 11 jurors vote guilty and 1 vote not guilty. I asked the woman who voted not guilty why she thought the man did not commit the crime. Her answer was that she thought we should give him another chance. It took an hour to convince her that our job was to decide guilty or not based on fact, not based on a belief that a person deserves another chance.

@SnoopSister: Yes, I was called to serve on a FEDERAL criminal jury in Philadelphia. Took the train into Center City each day from the suburbs. The Federal Courthouse was right on the Independence Mall near The Liberty Bell display. Crime: Several men who we learned were related, stole AN ENTIRE TRACTOR TRAILER FULL OF CUTTY SARK WHISKEY! From a US Customs warehouse at the Tioga Marine Terminal on the Delaware River. Right before Christmas. They couldn't resist 'sharing the wealth' with family, friends and neighbors! 🤦‍♀️ Of course, that's what broke the case, no pun intended! 😅 By the end of the trial, on which I was Foreman, there was only one defendant left. All the others took plea deals, we later learned. The one left was convicted. Don't know what his sentence was, as that was weeks later. I really enjoyed it. A fascinating process. I paid attention, took lots of notes and was able to ask pertinent questions that enabled me to clarify some issues in the other jurors' minds. 👍

@SnoopSister :
I have. Down in good old Downtown Houston. A man was accused of assaulting his girlfriend with a butcher knife. Trial went on for about 4 days. Most of the jury wanted to convict him, but I wasn't convinced. You are supposed to believe they are guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. I ended up being the lone hold-out. I watched as folks who really didn't believe he was guilty change their vote to guilty, because they wanted to get out of there. It made me sick, and I stuck to my opinion. The judge finally declared a mistrial. All the other jurors hated me, but I didn't give two ****. I couldn't send a man to jail, if I didn't believe he was guilty.

@SnoopSister :
Oh, and I'm currently looking at a Jury Summons from Marilyn Burgess (Harris County District Clerk). Date of jury service, today, April 17th. It's addressed to DH, who has been gone since March 2022. I'm just waiting for them to figure things out. Or come get him. This will be interesting. I can almost see how voter fraud can occur, if this is how they operate.

I wouldn't mind serving on a jury "locally", within 8 or so miles from my home, but no way am I'm going to drive into downtown Houston to serve....They have millions of people around that "core" area....Being out here, I don't feel I'd be "a peer" of the accused as required by law anyhow(unless he/she committed the crime in my hood or so)...Funny how LOOSE the word "peer" is when it comes to these things....I think the Constitution Drafters had a much tighter qualification of that term....

I've never been chosen.

I went last month, waited for 3 hours and didn't even make it to the selection process… I would like to finally make it to a jury. I'm interested in the whole process and would like to take part in it.

I served as juror on a criminal trial in Houston and it was a straightforward, no doubt case of a thief stealing appliances from a church.
One stupid juror voted not guilty because the policeman was the church pastor's brother-in-law. She was stubborn & stupid, but finally, suddenly changed her vote and we all thought she just didn't want to leave.

I've never been summoned to the court in Humble but my ex was several times. I'd like to be a juror there.

@SnoopSister: I have been summoned but either the case was dismissed or I was allowed to not show due to symptoms of Covid. When I was a young mother shopping downtown in my small town, a police officer chose me off the street while I was carrying a new baby and had a two year old. They were short potential jury members and out recruiting people. The officer did not take my name and I did not go in. I would love to serve on a jury for an interesting trial when I actually retire.

@Rosey : I was at a carnival with my family and I was asked to be in a police lineup! I went.

@SnoopSister : I was called TWICE in 2023.
The first I had to go downtown. DW and I had summons for the SAME DAY! I got picked to voir dire for a murder trial. When I was asked, "would you rather convict an innocent person or acquit a guilty person?" I answered, "convict an innocent person as there is always the appeals process." The defense attorney pushed back and then said, "do you know how many convictions get to go to through the appeals process, not many!" I said, "well then you had better be a really good lawyer to ensure that your client gets acquitted." Needless to say, I wasn't selected.
The second I had to go to Precinct 4 on Cypresswood in December and was dismissed almost immediately as they had the juries needed for the day already.