“I need to look after my cat” and other hilarious jury duty excuses
In a display as comedic as you might expect, the NSW Office of the Sheriff has put forward a list of excuses given by clever (or not) citizens looking to get out of jury duty.
According to Pauline Wright, NSW Law Society’s Chair of the Criminal Law Committee, “We really need to impress upon people how important it is to be a juror and what an important civic responsibility it is.
“If they were charged with a criminal offence, or if they were a victim of a crime, they would want to know that people were taking the role seriously in either helping a perpetrator get convicted or preventing an innocent person from going to jail.”
That may be true, but that didn’t make the excuses any less amusing, ranging from the hilarious to the bizarre. Below are some of the best responses:
“I can’t serve as a juror because…..”
- “I’m allergic to air conditioning”
- “I’ll fall asleep in the trial”
- “I need to look after my cat”
-“I have a public transport phobia”
-“voices tell me I shouldn't attend"
In reality, only 7050 of the hundreds of thousands summoned ever actually have to serve as a juror. We’re guessing these excuses garnered their evaders a hefty $1100 fine. In the end, it’s probably best just to go to court, even if your cat is feeling a bit needy that day.
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