New Committee Aims To Increase Juror Participation
by Pat Loeb
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Philadelphians are terrible at showing up for jury duty. A new committee hopes to improve participation.
"Jury service is really one of the highest callings of citizenship," said Judge Sheila Woods-Skipper.
She waxed eloquent about the importance of jury duty.
"The right to a trial by jury depends on the willingness of all to serve," Woods-Skipper said.
But apparently 42% of Philadelphians are unmoved.
That's the non-response rate to jury summonses, a statistic that puts a strain on those who do respond, says jury commissioner Dan Rendine.
"It's really not fair to those folks," he said.
So the Juror Participation Initiative Committee will consider steps such as: increasing juror pay, free transportation, stiffer penalties for not responding, and others that might improve the situation.
Rendine says the courts have already addressed one of the biggest complaints.
"Where's the coffee and cake? They stopped it in around 2010, so Judge Allen let us bring that back," Rendine said.
Rendine laments that will mean nothing to some 200,000 Philadelphians, the ones who don't even answer when called for duty.