A jury commissioner is the court officer who assembles and manages the pool of people available to serve on juries. In federal court, the role is built around 28 U.S.C. § 1863, which requires every district to maintain a written plan for randomly selecting jurors from the local population.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1863 – Plan for Random Jury Selection So when people ask what a jury commissioner does, the short answer is: they run the machinery that turns a community’s residents into the panels a court needs to try cases.
The Core Job
Most of the work is logistical. The commissioner maintains the master jury wheel, which is the database of names drawn from the community and used to generate pools for upcoming trials. Federal law requires that wheel to include names from every county or equivalent subdivision in the district, with each area represented in rough proportion to its population.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1863 – Plan for Random Jury Selection
Beyond the database, the commissioner runs the jury assembly room, coordinates enough people to cover the court’s trial calendar, and keeps records showing compliance with anti-discrimination rules. Federal law flatly prohibits excluding anyone from jury service based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or economic status.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1862 – Discrimination Prohibited That recordkeeping isn’t paperwork for its own sake. If a defendant challenges the composition of a jury pool, the commissioner’s documentation is what the court looks at.
Building the Jury Pool
The commissioner starts with source lists. Federal law directs courts to draw names from voter registration rolls or lists of actual voters, and because those alone can underrepresent parts of the community, the statute also requires supplemental sources where needed to achieve a fair cross-section.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1863 – Plan for Random Jury Selection In practice, many federal districts combine voter data with records from driver’s license agencies, tax rolls, or other government databases. State courts take similar approaches under their own statutes.
Once the lists are merged, randomization software picks names so no human influences the initial draw. The goal is simple: every eligible person in the jurisdiction should have a roughly equal chance of being summoned. Those names populate the master jury wheel, and smaller random draws from the wheel generate the specific panels called for individual trials or grand jury terms.
Checking Who Qualifies
When a summons goes out, it generally comes with a qualification questionnaire. The commissioner’s office uses the answers to decide whether the recipient can serve.
The federal baseline is that a juror must be a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old, and a resident of the judicial district for at least one year, and must be able to read, write, and speak English well enough to complete the questionnaire and follow proceedings. A pending felony charge or a prior felony conviction without restored civil rights also disqualifies a prospective juror.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 US Code 1865 – Qualifications for Jury Service
Honest answers matter. Anyone who intentionally misrepresents a material fact on the questionnaire, whether to avoid service or to get onto a jury, can be fined up to $1,000, jailed up to three days, or ordered to perform community service.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1864 – Drawing of Names From the Master Jury Wheel The commissioner’s office is the one reviewing those answers.
Processing Exemptions, Excusals, and Deferrals
This is where most people actually interact with the commissioner. Three groups are automatically exempt from federal jury service: active-duty military and National Guard members, members of professional fire and police departments, and public officers engaged full-time in government duties.6United States Courts. Juror Qualifications, Exemptions and Excuses Active-duty soldiers can also seek exemption under 10 U.S.C. § 982 when service would interfere with military duties or unit readiness.7U.S. Army. Civilian Court Jury Duty for Members of the Armed Forces
Everyone else has to show undue hardship or extreme inconvenience, and the commissioner is the person weighing that showing. Requests that go through most cleanly include concrete documentation: a signed note from a physician describing a condition that prevents attendance, proof of caregiving responsibilities for a dependent with no alternative care, or evidence of non-refundable travel booked before the summons arrived. Student enrollment verification can also support a hardship claim.
If you are responding to a summons, say directly whether you want a permanent excuse or a deferral to a later date. A deferral is often easier to get, because it signals willingness to serve. Clearer, better-documented requests give the commissioner less reason to come back with follow-up questions before deciding.
Handling ADA Accommodations
The commissioner’s office is also the point of contact for disability accommodations. If a condition affects your ability to get to the courthouse, sit through proceedings, or communicate during service, contact the office as soon as the summons arrives. The earlier the request, the more time the court has to arrange what you need, whether that is a sign-language interpreter, an assistive listening device, wheelchair-accessible seating, or something else. Many courts ask for accommodation requests at least 30 days before the reporting date when possible. Service animals are generally permitted in courthouses without a separate request; emotional support animals typically do not qualify.
Enforcing the Summons
The commissioner isn’t a judge, but the office is the gateway to one. Skipping federal jury duty without an approved excuse can trigger an order to appear and explain the absence. If the court finds no good cause, the penalty can reach $1,000, up to three days in jail, community service, or any combination of the three.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1866 – Selection and Summoning of Jury Panels State penalties vary but generally follow a similar structure of fines and possible contempt proceedings.
The practical takeaway is that the commissioner’s office would rather hear from you than chase you. A timely excusal request, deferral request, or accommodation request is what the office is set up to process. Silence is what forces the harder machinery to turn on.