DC Jury Duty Again? Not This Time!

Having just served jury duty for a week on a criminal case last October, I was in no mood to get another jury summons this week. It was from DC - where we used to live on Capitol Hill for thirteen years. We moved to northern Virginia five years ago, but that didn’t stop the summons from coming. Not only for me, but also for my husband a couple of years ago. When we lived in the district, my husband and I were called to jury duty at least every year it seemed. I had to go in three times and almost was called on a criminal case. Luckily they got enough jurors before my time came around. So I went to the website and filled in the information and completed the questionnaire. As soon as they asked for current address - with proof of current address like a drivers license, I knew the outcome would be in my favor. As soon as the information was submitted I received a notice that I was disqualified. I knew I would be, but I still felt a great deal of satisfaction. I also know that I do not need to serve anymore in Virginia because I just was stuck in the courthouse on a very grueling case, and I have reach the age limit. This is one thing I’m glad I don’t have to get involved with anymore. It’s just very inconvenient - especially when the guilty party gets off Scott free. 

Escape from Jury Duty

It wasn’t uncommon to get a jury duty summons at least every other year when we lived on Capitol Hill. Both my husband and myself had to show up for jury duty more times than what seemed “normal.” We lived in the Midwest for thirty years and I was called one time. Luckily for us, we didn’t get as far as actually serving, although I had a close call twice. The last time I got a summons it was not even a year since I had last served and I finally got a reprieve. So it was a surprise when my husband got a jury summons in the mail last week. It was forwarded via the post office to our new address in northern Virginia. I knew he wouldn’t need to serve, but he would definitely need to notify someone that we no longer lived in DC. So we checked the website and as soon as we updated the residential address, the pop up screen said he was disqualified because he was no longer a resident. That was followed up by an email that the disqualification was approved. We had mixed feelings about moving from Capitol Hill, but they become less and less intense when we get reminders like this one. We can still go visit whenever there’s a good reason. Every time we drive in to the old neighborhood - it’s only ten miles away - I am reminded of a lot of the more unpleasant issues we had to deal with. It’s taking my husband longer to feel the way I do, but I’m sure he’ll come around sooner than later. This is one of them.