Its daily. Create a Website Account - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more. As a full-time student, you can be exempted from jury duty if participating in them will make you miss a significant amount of classes. Be a citizen of Texas and a resident of Brazoria County in which you are to serve as a juror, Be of sound mind and good moral character, Be qualified under the constitution and laws to vote in Brazoria County in which you are to serve as a juror (you do not have to be registered to vote to be qualified to vote), Currently living within the limits of the City of Lake Jackson, Not be under indictment or other legal accusation of a misdemeanor theft, felony theft, or any other felony charge, Not have been convicted of theft or any felony, Not have served as a juror for six days during the preceding three months in the county court or during the preceding six months in the district court. "What is important about this whole thing is that juries and jury selection is the bedrock of our justice system," said Shellist. You need to contact the judge or the court to be excused on this basis. However, your employer cannot fire you while you are fulfilling your civic duty. At some point during the jury selection process, prospective jurors are given an oath by which they swear or affirm to tell the truth when answering questions about their qualifications as jurors. Assists prospective jurors with assignment information and administers juror payments. Jury lists are created using names randomly selected from our water utility listing. (Texas Gov't Code 62.0141. Sometimes the cards were shuffled, and sometimes they were organized according to the order in which the jurors arrived for duty. Call, or visit the court's website if listed above. Each online system is different. (Applies only to counties with a population of at least 200,000 unless the county uses a jury plan under 62.011, Gov't Code, and the period authorized under 62.011(b) exceeds two years. You MAY claim an exemption from jury duty if you are: Brazoria County Courthouse But the Legislature did not alter the system for selecting regular trial juries, and it remains unclear why Barchak would have changed her method at that time. Now Shes Auctioning Off Her Archive. the Texas Legislature outlawed the controversial key man method of grand jury selection, Inside the Karaoke Bar Where Texas Lawmakers Serenade Each Other, The Campaign to Sabotage Texass Public Schools. Bryan, TX 77803. I am a citizen of the state of Texas and a resident of Brazoria County. Solicitation Opportunities With Brazos County, National/State Veteran Cemetery Locations, Request Brazos County Birth, Death, and/or Marriage Certificate. Do not discuss or consider attorney's fees unless evidence about attorney's fees is admitted. Please enable JavaScript in your browser for a better user experience. Each juror receives ten dollars ($10) for the first day of appearance and forty dollars ($40) for the second and any subsequent days of appearance. *county-courthouse.com is not affiliated with the Official US Government, or any state, local, or federal office. Texas has a statutory exemption that allows individuals over a certain age to request exemption from jury duty. The county may choose to provide additional forms of compensation or reimbursement, including: Your local court will provide you with information regarding the existence and extent of any of these programs. The reason she divided the cards into four categories, he said, was to ensure a representative distribution of potential jurors. (This does not apply if the jury wheel has been reconstituted since your service as a petit juror. You need to contact the judge or the court to be exempted on this basis. She left the job after law enforcement began investigating the possibility that she wrongly empaneled jury pools. Although the courts make every effort to avoid delays, they sometimes will occur. Because you will need to consider all of the evidence admitted by the judge, it is important that you pay close attention to the evidence as it is presented at trial. Williams is serving life for a murder, which Hagger believes he did not commit, and thinks an improper jury played a role in his conviction. Physical and mailing address is 111 E. Locust St., Ste. This guide gives you the information you need when you have been called for jury duty and directs you to additional resources that can explain the court system and jury process. Not surprising given the political climate in Brazoria County. The court has the discretion to hear any reasonable sworn excuse of a prospective juror and either release the juror from jury service or reschedule the juror's jury service for another day. The approved plan stipulated that the district clerk would randomly select panels of prospective jurors. Paula Hannaford, director of the Center for Jury Studies at the National Center for State Courts in Virginia, said Barchak would likely have needed specific authorization to diverge from the standard randomization process. Selleck also announced that he requested the assistance of the Texas Rangers Public Integrity Unit to help investigate the matter. To serve as a juror you must meet the following qualifications: For additional information about Juror exemptions please view the following document: - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more. Angleton, TX 77515, Design By Granicus - Connecting People and Government. My question is, why did it have to be so complicated? he said. But What Is It? Hagger has reached out to Congressman Al Green, who confirmed to ABC13 he is working to learn more about the irregularities in the jury system in Brazoria County. All Rights Reserved. Citizens over the age of 70 can be exempt from jury service under this age exception.. Also, you may need money to pay for snacks, lunch, or pay phones. A venire evenly divided between white and non-white residents would have meant underrepresentation of people of color on juries. The process shes doing gives the jury a better chance of being a cross section, which is what were supposed to do with a jury pool, Lewis said. A Grand Jury declined to indict a former Brazoria County District Clerk after she was accused of handpicking juries and the District attorney considers the case closed, but still it may not be over. If you are unfamiliar with the courthouse and its surroundings you should carefully review the instructions that are included with summonses. When you report for jury service, you should receive or request a form that allows you to direct the county treasurer to donate your reimbursement for jury service to a designated charity or fund which should include: Your employer is not required to pay you for any time that you missed from work due to jury service. EMBED <> More Videos RELATED: Families want feds to look into Brazoria Co. jury process: 'The truth is always going to come out'. However, you will probably be asked for a juror index number (or other number provided on the summons) and the service date (also on your summons). The Brazoria County District Attorney's Office has received information that leads them to believe jury panels may have been assembled in a manner "inconsistent with applicable statutes and law." Do not mingle with nor talk to the lawyers, the witnesses, the parties, or any other person who might be connected with or interested in the case, except for casual greetings. Lawyers then conduct what is called voir dire (which means to speak the truth), which allows the lawyers and the judge to have the opportunity to ask each prospective juror a series of questions. State law mandates the process for selecting prospective jurors. I believe thats generally the case, he said. Unfortunately there are no business/self-employment exemptions administered by the state legislature at this time. Penalty for Defaulting Jurors.). Barchaks methods were widely known to county officials, Lewis said. 979-388-1836 (Brazosport) She now had four stacks of cards: Pearland whites, Pearland non-whites, non-Pearland whites, and non-Pearland non-whites. "I'm putting my faith in the Department of Justice to come back with their conclusion in what they're discovering and finding in a jury tampering system and what took place in Brazoria County, Texas," Quanell told ABC13. The Court entry and parking lot face Chenango Street. and the Texas Rangers for their thorough and thoughtful investigation. You are not required to claim an exemption even though one might apply to you. A district court judge may permanently or temporarily exempt from jury service a person with a physical or mental impairment or with an inability to comprehend or communicate in the English language that makes it impossible or very difficult to serve on a jury. -See JURY SERVICE - Tex. Leave them blank to get signed up. by: Magnolia832 4 OP. http://www.brazoria-county.com/directory.asp, The Public Access to Court Records (PACER). Unfortunately, prospective jurors who appear and participate in the jury selection process will spend a great deal of time waiting. A person who receives a summons for jury service and fails to answer the summons as directed by the summons, is subject to a contempt action that is punishable by a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000. Court System Type: County Constitutional Court Division: Contact Information: Phone Number: 979-864-1200 Website: http://www.brazoria-county.com/directory.asp For those jurors who are selected to serve in a jury panel, the judge and the attorneys may be able to estimate how long that particular trial will last. The length of jury service will vary considerably for summoned jurors. Texas does not specify the randomization method that clerks must use, he said, so Barchaks system was fairer than simply shuffling the cards. Barchaks method, said Matagorda County district clerk Janice Hawthorne, takes away the whole random process., In additional to potentially violating state law, Barchaks system appears to differ from her own jury plan, which she submitted to the Brazoria County Commissioners Court for approval in 2018. Most Lake Jackson cases are concluded the same day. Gabriel Garcia Brazos County District Clerk 300 E. 26th Street, Suite 1200 Her attorney is maintaining her innocence. You will not be asked, and you should not consider, whether one party or the other should win. The information contained on this web site is not intended to take the place of the instructions given by the judge or the court concerning any aspect of jury service. I dont know why [Barchak] moved away from it., Jeff Purvis has practiced law in Brazoria County for more than two decades, first as a prosecutor and then as a defense attorney. Brazoria County Jury Duty is Canceled for Tuesday, January 19, 2021. I am of sound mind and good moral character. JURY SERVICE. Without having a very explicit statutory or court authorization for doing that, it strikes me as being legally problematic., Lewis said that Barchak began using the system around 2015, when the Texas Legislature outlawed the controversial key man method of grand jury selection, under which jury commissioners picked friends and colleagues to serve on grand juries, which determine whether there is enough evidence to file charges against someone. The process by which Barchak assembled the final stack is unclear. When you report for jury service, you will likely find that there are well-trained court personnel available to assist you and to answer any questions that you may have concerning jury duty. Entering the courthouse with a prohibited weapon is against the law. Complete Jury Orientation: Jury orientation is mandatory for all jurors prior to reporting for jury service. To postpone your Jury Service, call: 979-864-1836 (Central & West) 979-388-1836 (Brazosport) For updates on this story, follow Tom Abrahams on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. County of Brazos 300 E 26th Street Bryan, TX 77803 Email the County of Brazos More contact info . Jury duty is a valuable service to the community and is an important responsibility since jurors determine a defendants guilt or innocence and, in the case of a guilty finding, assess fines. Nate Moore Sr., who served as deputy district clerk for sixteen years under Barchaks predecessor, said the county had no consistent system for selecting the venires. To ensure the safety of everyone at the courthouse, expect to be screened through a metal detector and X-ray unit. A Right-wing Cabal Took Over Odessas Municipal Government. RELATED: Brazoria County District Clerk's Office under investigation over 'irregularities' in jury process, "They would sort them into four separate piles," Bauman said. The easiest way to get out of jury duty is by not being qualified in the first place. Houston Chronicle Reporter Anna Bauman read the report and explains how Barchak may have violated Texas law which states jury selection must be random. Your participation is important to Texas! Texas Monthly contacted 38 current and former district court employees to try to confirm Lewiss description of Barchaks system; all either failed to respond or declined to comment. Among the district clerk candidates in next years election is Barchaks former chief deputy, Republican Cayla Meyers, who recently resigned. While some counties choose to mail a questionnaire to prospective jurors to determine their eligibility prior to mailing the official jury summons, other counties mail the questionnaire and the jury summons together. Its free. Investigation underway into jury assembly process in Brazoria County. Code 62.101. Under state law, jurors are supposed to be selected at random from the pool of those whove been called to jury duty. The grand jury's decision not to . The law requires jurors be selected at random, said Selleck, also a Republican, and it is this process that is alleged to have been conducted improperly.. As a result, you need to follow all of the jury instructions given by the judge throughout the case very carefully. The process that she seems to have invented on her own was clearly not random. ATTENTION JURORS: You have just taken an oath that you will render a verdict on the evidence submitted to you under the judge's rulings. Full-Time Student. It is also one of the most politically moderate parts of the county.). As noted by the Honorable Tom C. Clark, Texan and former justice of the United States Supreme Court, "The jury system improves the quality of justice and is the sole means of keeping its administration attuned to community standards.". The Government Code states that a person who fails to comply with this summons is subject to a contempt action punishable by a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 (62.0141). ); Have legal custody of a child younger than 12 years of age and your service on the jury requires leaving the child without adequate supervision; Are a student of a public or private secondary school; Are a person enrolled and in actual attendance at an institution of higher education; Are an officer or an employee of the senate, house of representatives, or any department, commission, board, office, or other agency in the legislative branch of government; Have served as a petit juror in the county during the 24-month period preceding the date you are required to appear for this summons. 111 E. Locust, Suite 500 If you have any doubts as to your eligibility to serve on a jury, contact the judge or court as indicated on your jury summons. Each county receives a list of potential jurors from the Secretary of State that consists of those individuals in the county that are registered to vote, hold a Texas driver's license, or hold a Texas identification card. HOUSTON, TEXAS 77002. As a defense lawyer, I dont want twelve people from Pearland judging my guy from Freeport. Why did I receive a summons and what do I do now? 1400 LUBBOCK, ROOM 214. Both you and other prospective jurors who report for jury service will be given an opportunity to voluntarily donate your juror pay to certain local or state charitable causes. Step 1: Dress inappropriate clothing: You should dress professionally and appropriately for jury duty. . The following day, the district clerk in question, retired. Do not make personal inspections, observations, investigations, or experiments nor personally view premises, things or articles not produced in court. Angleton, TX 77515-4678, Brazoria County Courthouse seq.). Brazoria County district attorney Tom Selleck first acknowledged what he termed irregularities in an August 25 public statement, writing that jury trial panels may have been assembled in a manner inconsistent with applicable statutes and law. Two days later, Selleck announced that he had asked the Texas Rangers Public Integrity Unit to investigate. Call your District Clerk's office. Lewis said Barchak received no training on how to randomize the cards, and that she learned the technique from other county employees. Also, you may need money to pay for snacks, lunch, or pay phones. Its not that hard.. Gov. The judge will instruct you to adhere to the following basic rules: At the conclusion of all the evidence, the judge may give you a written charge that asks you some specific questions. Wear a suit or dress with a skirt. Before choosing to reschedule your service please understand that you are limited to just ONE change so please be sure that you choose your new appearance date carefully. Are over 70 years of age (You may also request a permanent age 70 exemption. Pointed items, such as pocket knives or knitting needles, are not permitted in the courthouse. Copyright 2023 KTRK-TV. The Brazoria County District Attorney's Office has received information that leads them to believe jury panels may have been assembled improperly. BRAZORIA COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- A grand jury declined to indict a former Brazoria County District clerk after she was accused of handpicking jurors. The district attorney considers the matter closed and that "currently, based on the investigation (by the Texas Rangers) there are no cases or convictions being reviewed. If you receive a call about missing jury duty, please call the Brazoria County District Clerk's Office phone number at 979-864-1836 and the Brazoria County District Attorney's Office at 979-864-1230. The Texas Rangers confirmed to ABC13 that their investigation is complete. The district attorney considers the case closed, but it may not be over. Next, Lewis said, Barchak would subdivide the two geographical piles into white and non-white jurors. "If you could do this to my son and all the other individuals and think it's okay then she needs to be punished according to what she did to them.". The district clerks of nearby Wharton, Montgomery, and Matagorda counties said they had never heard of anyone using Barchaks method. A juror who is lawfully notified to attend court is subject to a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500 if that juror either: fails to attend court in obedience to the notice without a reasonable excuse; or. 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