Mass. drops criminal complaint against dead man...who failed to show up for jury duty

(CBS/AP) - You probably thought being dead or dying was a good excuse to get out of jury duty, didn't you? Not in Massachusetts, slacker.

The state has graciously dropped its criminal complaint against Georgetown resident Michael Wylie nearly five years after he died.

Five years!

The now-deceased man was issued a notice to serve on jury duty five years ago but at the time he was in hospice care with terminal cancer. Although he died a few months later, the Mass. Office of the Jury Commissioner continued sending letters about his failure to report.

Wylie's family says they tried to tell authorities that Michael Wylie was dead, but officials say the family never sent a death certificate.

Maybe now the state will let Mr. Wylie rest in peace.