A jury is a group of ordinary citizens sworn in by a court to hear evidence and decide the facts of a legal case. If you are asking what is a jury, the short answer is that it is the body the U.S. Constitution puts between the government and a verdict: regular community members, not officials, decide whether the prosecution has proven a crime or whether a civil plaintiff has shown harm. Jurors are drawn at random from the community, and serving when called is both a right and an obligation of citizenship.
Three amendments anchor the institution. The Fifth Amendment requires a grand jury to approve formal charges before anyone faces trial for a serious federal crime.1Legal Information Institute. Fifth Amendment The Sixth guarantees criminal defendants a speedy, public trial before an impartial jury in the district where the crime occurred.2Congress.gov. Sixth Amendment The Seventh preserves the right to a jury in federal civil lawsuits over twenty dollars.3Congress.gov. Seventh Amendment Within a trial, the jury is the trier of fact. The judge handles the law.
Trial Juries and Grand Juries
There are two kinds of juries, and they do very different work.
A petit jury, also called a trial jury, is what most people picture. It sits through a trial, hears witnesses, reviews evidence, and delivers a verdict. In a criminal case, it decides whether the prosecution has proven guilt. In a civil case, it decides whether the plaintiff has shown the defendant caused harm that warrants compensation. Federal petit juries have between six and twelve members.4United States Courts. Types of Juries
A grand jury works at the earlier, charging stage. A prosecutor presents evidence, and the grand jury decides whether there is probable cause to believe a crime was committed. If it agrees, it issues an indictment, the formal document that charges the defendant and sends the case toward trial.4United States Courts. Types of Juries Grand juries are larger, with sixteen to twenty-three members, and they operate in secret. No judge or defense attorney is in the room during the proceedings, and the defendant usually has no right to testify or even to know a grand jury is reviewing the case. The one-sided setup is intentional. The grand jury exists to check prosecutors, not to weigh both sides.
Who Qualifies for Jury Service
Federal law sets baseline qualifications. You must be a U.S. citizen, at least eighteen, and have lived primarily in the judicial district for at least one year. You also have to read, write, speak, and understand English well enough to follow testimony and instructions.5United States Courts. Juror Qualifications, Exemptions and Excuses
Anyone currently facing felony charges that carry more than a year in prison is disqualified, as is anyone previously convicted of a felony whose civil rights have not been restored. Three groups are exempt even if otherwise qualified: active-duty members of the armed forces and National Guard, professional police officers and firefighters (not volunteers), and full-time public officers at the federal, state, or local level.5United States Courts. Juror Qualifications, Exemptions and Excuses
How Jurors Are Chosen
Qualified people are summoned to the courthouse in a pool. The actual seating happens through voir dire, where the judge and attorneys question prospective jurors about biases, personal connections to the case, and anything else that could affect a fair verdict.6United States Courts. Juror Selection Process
Attorneys remove jurors in two ways. A challenge for cause asks the judge to dismiss someone for a specific reason, such as a stated bias or a personal relationship with a party, and there is no cap on the number. A peremptory challenge lets an attorney strike a juror without stating any reason, but each side gets only a limited number.7United States Courts. Participate in the Judicial Process – Rule of Law The Supreme Court has barred one use of peremptory strikes: they cannot be used to remove jurors because of their race.8Justia Law. Batson v. Kentucky, 476 US 79 (1986)
What Jurors Do During a Trial
Once sworn in, jurors are expected to pay close attention to every witness and every exhibit. They cannot research the case on their own. No internet searches, no news coverage, no conversations with family or friends, and no discussion with other jurors until deliberations formally begin. A verdict has to rest on what came in through the courtroom, not on anything a juror picked up elsewhere.
The judge instructs the jury on the law, including the standard of proof. In a criminal case, the prosecution must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, the highest standard in the legal system. In a civil case, the plaintiff only needs to show that their version of events is more likely true than not, a lower bar called preponderance of the evidence.4United States Courts. Types of Juries
After both sides finish, the jury goes to a private room to deliberate. The discussion is confidential. Jurors review the exhibits, talk through conflicting testimony, and try to reach the verdict the law requires. In federal criminal cases, every juror must agree.9Justia Law. Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 31 – Jury Verdict The Supreme Court extended that unanimity requirement to state criminal trials in 2020.10Supreme Court of the United States. Ramos v. Louisiana Federal civil juries also return unanimous verdicts by default, though the parties can agree in advance to accept a non-unanimous result.11Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 48 – Number of Jurors, Verdict, Polling If a jury cannot reach the required agreement, the judge may declare a mistrial, and the case often starts over with a new panel.
Pay, Job Protection, and Skipping the Summons
Federal jurors are paid $50 per day of service.12United States Courts. Fees of Jurors and Commissioners State courts set their own rates, and the pay is often lower. Some states pay nothing for the first few days. Jury pay counts as taxable income.13Internal Revenue Service. Skills Warm Up – Jury Duty Pay Given to Employer
Federal law makes it illegal for an employer to fire, threaten, or punish a permanent employee for serving on a federal jury or being scheduled to serve. An employer who violates the rule can be liable for lost wages, a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per violation per employee, and a court order reinstating the worker with full seniority and benefits as if the time off were an authorized leave.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1875 – Protection of Jurors Employment An employee who believes they were retaliated against can apply to the district court, which will appoint an attorney at no cost if it finds the claim has probable merit.
A jury summons is a court order. Ignoring it is treated as contempt. A federal court can fine you up to $1,000, sentence you to up to three days in jail, order community service, or combine those penalties.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1866 – Selection and Summoning of Jury Panels State courts have their own penalties along the same lines. If you have a real conflict, such as a medical emergency, a prepaid trip, or serious financial hardship, most courts will consider a postponement. The step that matters is responding before the deadline, not disappearing.