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1. How did my name get selected for jury duty?

Your name was obtained from the list of registered voters in Miami County, which was provided by the Board of Elections. The drawing of prospective jurors is performed according to statutory guidelines, which assure a random selection of a fair cross section of the community. Being a registered voter is NOT a prerequisite to serving. Your voting record (how you voted or voting frequency) has nothing to do with your ability to be selected. It is only the source list that is used to obtain jurors' names.

2. What hours will I serve?

Normal business hours for the court are 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you are in the jury pool, your report time will be 7:45 a.m. everyday and you will need to remain in the jury assembly room until released for the day by the Jury Managers. You will be released for lunch from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Release times each day will vary, but usually fall between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. If you are seated as a sworn juror, the judge on your case will tell you what time to report each day. Please expect to be here until 4:00 p.m. when actually seated on a jury.

3. What happens when I report for jury duty?

When you arrive at the Miami County Municipal Court, you will be asked to verify your juror questionnaire. The information contained on the questionnaire is used to assist attorneys in selecting a jury. The original copy is kept by the Jury Manager and copies are made of the questionnaire to be used in the courtroom. After all the jurors have been checked in, you will go through our juror orientation. Our juror orientation video is viewed and the Court Administrator or Bailiff will go over many other areas of concern. The entire orientation will last about ½ hour. After orientation, we will hopefully be assigning new jurors to courtroom service.

4. I got a jury summons for a deceased family member. What should I do?

We apologize for any undue hardship this has caused. Please mark the outside of the summons "DECEASED" and return it to our office. We will be sure to take the name out of our system. You should also contact the Board of Elections to make sure they have been notified that the family member is deceased. Otherwise, the name will remain on their records, allowing us to have access to it each year when new jurors are pulled.

5. Can I volunteer for jury service or send someone in my place if I am unable serve?

We wish it were that easy! State law and local rules require that all prospective jurors be selected AT RANDOM from the source list that is used.

6. I received a jury summons for the previous resident of my home. What should I do?

You should treat the summons as you would any other piece of mail that does not belong to you. Simply write "NOT AT THIS ADDRESS - RETURN TO SENDER" on the outside of the summons and put it back in the mail. We will process it as an undelivered summons.

7. I've been called several times for jury duty and yet I know a lot of people who have never been called. Why?

The drawing of prospective jurors each year is a completely RANDOM process. There really isn't a good explanation of why some people are called more than once when others haven't been called at all. You may be interested to know that 90% of the people who report for jury duty have NEVER served before!

8. I meet the eligibility requirements for serving as a juror but am I really "qualified" to serve?

You do not need any special skills, training, or legal knowledge to be a juror. You do need to be able to listen carefully, follow instructions, keep an open mind, and be willing to make a decision free from personal feelings or biases. As a juror, you will be responsible for impartially evaluating all the facts that are presented to you during the trial and, as the judge instructs, apply the law as it is written to the facts of the case.

9. I got a jury summons for Miami County and I no longer live in Miami County. What do I do?

To be eligible to serve in Miami County, you must reside in Miami County. If you have moved from Miami County, please fill out the appropriate section of your jury summons. Once you have filled it out, mail the entire summons back to the Jury Commission. In the meantime, you may want to contact the Board of Elections to make sure they know that you have moved outside the county. Otherwise, you could continue to be called for service.

10. What if my employer requires me to turn in a statement that verifies my attendance to jury duty?

Work Verifications/Proof of Service Reports are in the form of your summons for service. We do not keep track of the actual hours you spend in court, only the number of days that you report. Your employment is protected by law while you are serving as a juror. If you have any problems with your employer in connection with your jury service, please notify the Jury Commission immediately.

11. Is it possible that I might report for jury duty but never get to sit on a jury?

Unfortunately yes. Although there is a slight chance that you will never get called for a case, there is a possibility that you will not be seated as a sworn juror. It is our hope that every juror will at least have the opportunity to go through the jury selection process. Also, you may experience a situation where you are called to sit as a prospective juror and the case resolves just moments before the trial begins. If this should happen to you, please do not feel as if your time has been wasted. Your presence alone encourages resolution.

12. I got a jury summons in the mail. What do I do?

First, don't panic! Second, please take the time to READ IT!! A common mistake many people make is simply not reading through the summons. Much time and preparation went into the design of our summons. Some of your initial questions and concerns will be easily addressed through the information contained in the jury summons itself. It will explain briefly your term of service, when and where to report, what to do if you have a request to be excused, how to handle mandatory disqualifications, courthouse location and parking information, dress code, contact phone numbers and information about this web site. If after reading through the summons and/or our web site and you still have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to call us at (937) 440-3937. We will be glad to assist you in any way we can.

13. Do I have to respond to the jury summons?

To answer your question directly, yes. Your jury summons is an official court order. If anyone fails to report for jury duty without a lawful excuse from the court, they may be brought before the court for possible contempt of court proceedings. If found in contempt by the judge, the court may impose a fine and/or other punishment as provided by Ohio law. Indirectly, let us say this. Without jurors, the jury system cannot work the way the authors of the Constitution of the United States wanted it to. We realize the sacrifice that we are asking you to make. We also understand that you may be apprehensive about being called to serve. However, the overwhelming majority of people who serve find the experience to be highly rewarding. When asked, most people say they wouldn't mind to do it again sometime in the future. Jury duty for most people will mean a substantial, though temporary, change to your everyday life, rearranging schedules and missing work. But if you were ever involved in a dispute or charged with a criminal offense, wouldn't you want someone just like you to make those same sacrifices in order to be a part of your jury?