HOW TO AVOID JURY SERVICE
by Jim Redwine
Just kidding; you can’t. However, if one should be so inclined as to try, the starting point would be Posey Circuit Court Bailiff and Posey Circuit and Superior Courts Jury Administrator Linda Fetcher. Linda just started her new position in June 2016. She took over from Dr. John Emhuff who served in both roles, summa cum laude, for fifteen years. Dr. John will be a tough act to follow. Linda has hit the ground running.
Linda and Gene Fetcher have been married fifty-four years and have three children, seven grandchildren and two great grandchildren. So, potential jury service evader, do not attempt some “the dog ate my homework†excuse. Linda has heard them all.
While Linda may live in Wadesville, Indiana where the gas pumps outnumber the residents. Do not assume she is not worldly. Linda has traveled to twenty foreign countries, several of them more than once, due to her involvement with Academic Year in America. Through this foreign student exchange program Linda has hosted more than thirty young people from numerous countries who lived with Linda and Gene during an academic year. Linda also has heard excuses in several languages. She has also gained valuable experience while serving as a volunteer board member of the Posey County Council on Aging.
Jurors in Posey County’s two courts are selected randomly via a computer program from Posey County residents who are at least eighteen years old. The lists are compiled automatically from the rolls of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Indiana Department of Revenue.
From a general “venire†composed of these two groups Linda sends out 500 notices each month. Posey County has about seventeen thousand potential jurors and jury trials are not a common way to resolve legal matters. You can see that an opportunity to assist in the administration of justice is a rare thing, relax.
In Posey County these rare events usually last about two days. Posey County has not had a jury trial last more than two weeks in the thirty-five years I have been judge. Also, Indiana law allows a potential juror to defer her/his service for a year upon a simple written request which Linda brings to the judge’s attention.
Should you be so fortunate as to receive a greeting from Linda I think you should see it as an opportunity for an interesting and rewarding experience. If not, Linda can see that for at least a year the excitement is delayed. And by the way, if you are called to serve and do so Indiana law gives one a two-year exemption from future jury service.
