Missed Jury Summons x 2

July 15, 2024 11:29 AM

I apparently received two jury summonses in two separate counties but didn't know and now I have two "notices of failure to respond" to deal with. I've logged in to the jury duty websites, but I do not know what comes next after I agree to their T&C regarding computer system requirements. What should I expect? Main county is Los Angeles. Thank you.
posted by The Adventure Begins to Law & Government (14 answers total)

Call the Clerk of Courts for each summons. They are incredibly helpful people. You don't say why you did not receive them?? If you have moved or were traveling and have proof, it may be easy to resolve.
posted by Silvery Fish at 11:34 AM on July 15

Response by poster: Also, to be clear, I am not asking for anything other than info on what to expect. Please do not give advice on how to avoid jury duty.

Re: not receiving them. Neither showed up in my mailboxes. I have two because of reasons but I should ONLY have received on, also because of reasons.
posted by The Adventure Begins at 11:35 AM on July 15

Have you confirmed that you really missed them? Reason I ask is someone tried to scam me recently by calling from a spoofed number and saying I had missed a summons and there was a warrant out for me but they could take payment for the fine over the phone and ... you get the picture.

So guess I'd just reiterate Silvery Fish and suggest you just call the court and see what they have to say.
posted by bowmaniac at 11:42 AM on July 15 [4 favorites]

Based on personal experience, they will just put your name back in the system and you'll get another call-up when it's your turn. Just make sure they have your proper current address -- you shouldn't be getting called to appear in a county that's not where you currently live.
posted by BlahLaLa at 11:51 AM on July 15 [1 favorite]

My understanding is that If the summons are from two different courts (so you only missed once each) the most likely thing is that they will put you back in the jury pool and you should expect to receive a new summons sooner rather than later.

So, call the court where you won't supposed to receive the summons and let them know what happened and they will tell you if you have to do anything more to take care of it. Call the court where you are supposed to received summons, they make note of it and tell you not to do it again.
posted by metahawk at 11:54 AM on July 15

Response by poster: Just to reiterate: I am trying to figure out what happens after I log in to My Jury Portal on lacourt.org/jury. This is the screen I am on now. Am I going to be asked to pay a fine? Is this the real website? I received a postcard in the mail instructing me to do log in under the threat of a $1500 fine so that's what I'm trying to suss out.
posted by The Adventure Begins at 11:58 AM on July 15

I got one of these for LA County after I must have accidentally tossed the summons with junk mail. I didn't do anything about it, reasoning that there's no way they actively come after people for this because that would be immensely expensive. I just showed up the next time I was summoned, and that was that. No fine, no mention of the notice of failure to respond.
posted by yasaman at 12:05 PM on July 15 [2 favorites]

You will not receive a better answer from anyone than you will from the county court. I have googled to check this in a few places, and I am pretty confident the best phone number is 213-894-3644

I'm not a California resident but I do have to call state and local agencies an awful lot because of my job, and almost everyone I've ever spoken to is someone who wants to help. Speaking to a human person on the phone is much more effective than navigating websites for this kind of stuff.
posted by phunniemee at 12:18 PM on July 15 [8 favorites]

Best answer: What's going to happen is nothing. No fines, no jail time, etc. They will, at most, be mildly happy that you got this sorted out and are willing to serve on the jury next time your number comes up (and the county where you don't live will be happy to get your off their books).

I'm sure there is a state or local law out there somewhere saying there is a fine of UP TO $1500, but even if you were convicted the fine would likely be more like $100-$200 the first time around at most. In reality they could never convict you because all you have to say is "I never received it in my mailbox" and they have no way to prove otherwise. Something like 3-5% of U.S. mail is lost/misplaced/never delivered and so every time they send those postcards out there are many, many people who never actually receive theirs. So you were one of those people this time and no one is going to fine you/throw you in jail for that.

In fact if you look up CA Civil Code section 209 it says this in summary: "If a juror does not respond to an initial summons within 12 months and then fails to appear following a second summons and subsequent notice, the juror may be sanctioned. Sanctions for the first offense may not exceed $250..."

So you're not even on the radar because you missed the first postcard. I don't know what "notice" means exactly, but likely something where they sent an actual person, or a certified letter, or a phone call with you - something where they can document, not just guess, that you have received actually notification.
posted by flug at 12:27 PM on July 15 [1 favorite]

It looks like the url, at least, is real and not a scam.
The state government page on "find your court" links to a page on " http://www.lacourt.org"
posted by metahawk at 12:48 PM on July 15 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I recognize that MyJury portal - was just dealing with KidBlah needing to change his address to his collection location. It's a mess and they're slow to respond, but you're not going to get fined. They really just want to sort you into a new pile. The next time you get a summons, respond to it.
posted by BlahLaLa at 1:37 PM on July 15 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I'm also an LA County resident, and second what BlahLaLa said. That's the real portal and if you're still living in LA County, they just want you to Do the Jury Thing next time they summon you.
posted by ApathyGirl at 3:18 PM on July 15

I missed my summons - I somehow misplaced the piece of paper, was supposed to show up on a Monday by the time I remembered but it was the weekend and I had served for a different court in the prior year and was excused. I called the courthouse on Mondah, confirmed that it was a real summons and not a scam, and got instructions on what paperwork I needed to submit to be excused. Everyone was helpful and I received no fines even though I submitted things a few days late.
posted by A Blue Moon at 6:59 PM on July 15

Response by poster: Thanks everyone. Issue solved for now.
posted by The Adventure Begins at 4:24 AM on July 21