JURY DODGERS FINED SOME ORDERED TO PAY $1,500.Byline: Karen Maeshiro Staff Writer LANCASTER - More than 140 people will get fined $250 after they skipped a hearing asking them why they haven't answered summons summons: see procedure. summons In law, written notification that one is required to appear in court. In civil (noncriminal) cases, it notifies a defendant that he or she must appear and defend (e.g. to jury duty. Of six people who went through the hearing, one man was excused because he has a criminal record, one woman said she had actually served jury duty, two women and one man agreed to serve jury duty, and another man was fined after he disputed whether he was a U.S. citizen even though he was born in California. ``The real intent of these proceedings is not to punish pun·ish v. pun·ished, pun·ish·ing, pun·ish·es v.tr. 1. To subject to a penalty for an offense, sin, or fault. 2. To inflict a penalty for (an offense). 3. people as much as to enforce their service,'' Judge Thomas White Thomas White can refer to:
Thursday's hearing was part of a countywide coun·ty·wide adv. & adj. Throughout a whole county: found at locations countywide; a countywide search. Adj. 1. crackdown crack·down n. An act or example of forceful regulation, repression, or restraint: a crackdown on crime. Noun 1. on thousands of people who have ignored at least three jury-duty summonses. The hearings are part of a three-year effort by the court to persuade more people to serve as jurors. Fines for failing to respond to a jury summons range from $250 for a first offense, up to $750 for a second, and $1,500 for failing to appear for jury duty a third time. A total of 682 people who have evaded jury duty in the Antelope Valley's court district were ordered to show up in court this month to explain why they failed to respond to their summons. Of more than 360 people ordered to show up at the first two hearings last week and the week before, only 15 people showed up. The others got notices in the mail that they will be fined $250. The people who showed up and weren't excused were fined $250, but the judge delayed assessing the fine on the condition they committed to serving as jurors. ``Someone signs them up before they leave. They get them to commit to serving,'' court spokeswoman Pat Kelly said. Of the six who showed up for the hearing Thursday, all had already gotten fine notices in the mail except for the man who disputed whether he was a U.S. citizen. The judge didn't agree with the man's conclusion that he was not a citizen under the 14th Amendment, which extended citizenship to freed slaves after the Civil War. So far this year the court has called some 60,000 jury-duty evaders to juror juror n. any person who actually serves on a jury. Lists of potential jurors are chosen from various sources such as registered voters, automobile registration or telephone directories. sanction sanction, in law and ethics, any inducement to individuals or groups to follow or refrain from following a particular course of conduct. All societies impose sanctions on their members in order to encourage approved behavior. hearings around the county. ``The interest has not been giving fines, the interest has been getting them to serve as a juror,'' Kelly said. ``The goal is to encourage people to serve as jurors.'' About 4 million to 5 million were citizens called to jury duty last year. On any given day, 10,000 jurors sit in jury boxes throughout Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County. Karen Maeshiro, (661) 267-5744 karen.maeshiro(at)dailynews.com |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion