The peculiarities of jury service

The right to trial by a jury is one of the most important American rights which is guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States. By serving on a Jury you are helping to guarantee one of our most important freedoms.

Your job as a juror is to listen to all the evidence presented at trial and to 'decide the facts' -that is, to decide what really happened. The judge, on the other hand, 'decides the law' -that is, makes decisions on legal issues during the trial. For example, the judge may have to decide whether you and the other jurors may hear certain evidence or whether one lawyer may ask a witness a certain question. You should not try to decide these legal issues, sometimes you will even be asked to leave the courtroom while they are being decided. In order to do your job you do not need any special knowledge or ability. It is enough that you keep an open mind, concentrate on the evidence being presented, use your common sense, and be fair and honest. Finally, you should not be influenced by sympathy or prejudice: it is vital that you be impartial with regard to all people and all ideas.

Many jurors find it exciting to learn about this important system 'from the inside', and challenging to deal fairly and thoroughly with the cases they hear. We hope that you find your experience as a juror to be interesting and satisfying.

How You Were Chosen

Your name was selected at random from voter registration records and placed on a list of potential jurors. Next, your answers to the Questionnaire for Jurors were evaluated to make sure that you were eligible for jury service and were not exempt from service. To be eligible, you must be over 18 years of age, a citizen of the United States, a resident of the county in which you are to serve as a juror, able to communicate in the English language and if you have been convicted of a felony, you must have had your civil rights restored. People who meet these requirements may be excused from jury service if they have illnesses that would interfere with their ability to do a good job, would suffer great hardship if required to serve, or are unable to serve for some other reason.

You are here because you were found to be eligible for jury duty and were able to serve. You are now part of the "jury pool", the group of people from which trial juries are chosen.

CITIZENSHIP IN THE US

The fourteenth article of the amendments declares that "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United Stated and of the State wherein they reside".

The fourteenth amendment indicates the two methods in which one may become a citizen: 1) by birth in the United Stated; 2)by naturalization therein. but a citizen by birth must not only be born within the Unites States, but he must also be subject to the jurisdiction thereof; and by this is meant that full and complete jurisdiction to which citizens generally are subject, and not any qualified and partial jurisdiction, such as may consist with allegiance to some other government.

The amendment therefore, affirms the citizenship of children born within the United States of all persons, of whatever race of color; but it does not affirm the citizenship "of children of foreign sovereigns or their ministers, or born on foreign public ships, or of enemies within and during a hostile occupation of part of our territory.

NATURALIZATION

Congress is empowered "to establish a uniform rule of naturalization". Naturalization is the act by which the rights, privileges, and immunities of citizenship are conferred upon a person born as alien. There is no doubt that, when Congress has prescribed a rule, its power is exclusive, since any regulation by a State, not in force in every other State, would break the rule of uniformity. The States have, therefore, by their assent t this provision, made Congress the exclusive depositary of the power to confer citizenship.

A citizen, in the full acceptation of that term, may be said to be a member of the civil state entitled to all its privileges.

The principal differences in privilege between an alien and a citizen consist in these: the former when he resides in the county is there by sufferance merely; he cannot own real estate therein, and he cannot exercise political rights. But these differences do not always exist: the States of the Union recognize fully the right of aliens to reside within their limits without hindrance, and in many States they are permitted freely to hold, convey, and transmit to their descendants real estate.

One privilege, at least, the State could not confer up an alien. Without the power of naturalization she could not give him as a citizen a title to all those privileges and immunities of citizens of the several States which the Federal Constitution guarantees and secures.