With Covid-19 cases remaining high into 2021 and slower-than-expected vaccine distribution, Government agencies continue to take measures to ensure public safety, and Court jury process is has been no exception.
Jury managers have made and continue to make adjustments to the jury process. Among those changes have been updated instructions on:
1) When to report - smaller jury groups mean jurors may be on call for a greater number of days.
2) Where to report - the need for social distancing has led to multiple jury assembly areas, whether within at the same building, among multiple government offices/courthouses, and in some cases, non-government locations.
In addition, measures are being often being taken to screen jurors in advance of their service date, as well as allow deferral of service for jurors that are experiencing Covid symptoms. This is often handled through pre-service questionnaires.
streamWrite Portals for Justice offers jury services communication channels such as:
- IVR - Interactive Voice Response
- IWR - Interactive Web Response
- ITR -Interative Text Response
ATI has been working with Court jury staff as well as jury management systems vendors like JSI to implement questionnaires, add new locations, implement custom messages, and outbound reminders, so jurors can obtain instructions specific to their individual or group's status.
If your Court is seeking ways to efficiently streamline the jury process or improve the juror experience, we are here to help.
Although budgets will continue to be a challenge, many Courts have been able to make adjustments to their jury process at little or no cost. For Courts seeking additional capabilities such as ITR or Jury reminders, grant funding may be available; in California, the grant application window is open until January 19, 2021.