Jury duty in 3 days - anxiety issues

dandy-candy

skateykatey wrote: »

I've done jury duty before and can confirm that the clerks of the court have dealt with all sorts of situations before so don't feel that you're the only person who has felt nervous, for want of a better expression.

All cases are at the Crown Court (my case was GBH with intent) and it was really interesting...when you were called. The hardest thing is the boredom if you're not called for a case, you can't leave the building whenever you want so make sure to take something with you to distract you such as a book/magazine etc.

I'm sure that there was a child abuse case going on whilst I was there and someone said that they would not be able to remain impartial so they were excused.

The vast majority of cases are of the GBH type though.

it's easy for me to say, but do try to make it, you will feel so much better after the event.

Thanks for telling me this - I wasn't sure if it would make a difference if you say you can't deal with certain types of case but i'm glad it does.
I think once it's over I will feel really proud of myself, I just need to believe in myself. I will make a point of telling the clerks how I feel and hopefully they will put me at ease.

dandy-candy

Goldiegirl wrote: »

The jury bonded as a group as they were together for so long. The case was interesting, and there were even moments of humour in the court.

It was a positive experience for my husband.

I think you'll be pleased with yourselves when you've done it. Let us know how you get on - we don't need details of the case, you'll be told you can't discuss it

Thank you for replying, its really good to hear he found it positive. I don't think I would want to be on a long case though! I really hope I bond with the other people, that would definately help me feel more comfortable.

Air_Cooled_75

I did JS in September. It really does involve a lot of sitting around waiting and you might not even get selected to sit on a trial. I really wanted to do it but when it was time I did get nervous, although the first day I'd had a bad night with the little one and I just found a comfy chair and got my head down for a bit. From my experience there were a load of good people in the same position and we all got chatting, I'd taken my iPad and iPod but only used them for travelling once I starting talking to the others. I'd do it again, a lot of days I'd travelled in for 10ish but was home by early/mid afternoon. I think you'd find it quite rewarding (in a way) I'm a SAHM and being out of my comfort zone was also a worry to me, but I survived

19lottie82

I went to jury duty a couple of months ago and before they make the random selection of jurors they tell you that if being selected may cause you any form of personal difficulty, you can discuss it with a court official in private. 6 people did this and 5 got to leave, so I'm presuming they are quite understanding.

32b3in2013

I did jury service a couple of years ago. It was a very big case in the central criminal court (Old Bailey) my case lasted for a few months, and throughout the trial, the jury manager, court clerk, was really supportive and any jury member could go to him if they had any questions or worries.

Please do not worry about leaving the court after the verdict, you will probably come out of a completely different exit than the family.

It is such an interesting process, but there might also be a lot of waiting around. I didn't get chosen for a trial until thursday of my first week, so sat in the jury room reading a book from Monday to Wednesday, but once you are on a jury, there is so much going on, the time goes so quickly.

You will be looked after, and please tell the jury manager if you have any worries.

Enjoy, it is a great experiance! I wish I could do it again, but I think I am exempt for a few years because the trial I did was so long

32b3

Air_Cooled_75

I agree, the staff are very supportive and helpful.

meritaten

You could also be sitting on jury in a very short case and it is easy to reach a verdict! or you could may well well be sent home as you are not required! The defendant may have changed thier plea to guilty!

dandy-candy

Thank you so much for these responses, they are really helping. I actually have managed to go back into the kitchen and finish my dinner!
I have an image of the courts being very bleak and scary, and everyone being cold - its good to hear they are helpful and approachable.

pinkshoes

I did a 3.5 week murder trial. I was so nervous about doing jury service, but loved it, and met some nice people!

Lots of waiting around, so take a good book. We found some jigsaws to do in the waiting room!

skateykatey

dandy-candy wrote: »

Thank you so much for these responses, they are really helping. I actually have managed to go back into the kitchen and finish my dinner!
I have an image of the courts being very bleak and scary, and everyone being cold - its good to hear they are helpful and approachable.

Times have definately changed and now the whole process is very user friendly! I think we even watched a video on the first day which explained everything in easy to understand terms.

I was really surprised/impressed by the Judge; the media give the impression that Judges are so far removed from the man on the street but ours didn't miss a trick.

I really wish I could do it again, I was scheduled to be there for two weeks but only sat on one case which lasted about 4 days so was relieved earlier as I wasn't picked again.

One point to mention to avoid any stress if you're a bit nervous is that in our Court we had to go in airport style, i.e bags through the Xray machine and walk through the metal detector which did lead to some delays in getting into the building, so it might be an idea to get there a bit earlier if you can if you think that this delay may cause you additional worry.

We had to use a different lift to the general public so you are kept apart from any potentially angry relatives, the jury room is totally secure.