Oh the joys of jury duty. The civic responsibility most citizens wish they weren’t responsible for. Excuses range from personal prejudices, to physical handicaps, to Jeffrey Dahmer.
Yes, mentioning a friendship with Jeffrey Dahmer can now join the list of viable excuses for getting out of jury duty. For those of you who don’t know, Jeffrey Dahmer was a notorious mass murderer convicted of killing and dismembering several boys and men mainly in the Milwaukee area.
In all fairness, the dropping of Dahmer’s name came during a routine jury pool inquiry. When a judge was conducting the initial jury screening, he asked the same set of questions he always asks, including “has anyone you know ever been convicted of a crime.” It was prospective juror John Backdef’s response that caught the courtroom off guard.
Needless to say the judge, attorneys, and jury box were stunned by the response and Backdef was ultimately dismissed from jury duty. The purpose behind the line of questioning is to ensure that a fair and impartial jury is selected to sit on a given case. A friendship with Jeffrey Dahmer is not a per se bar from jury duty but it may cause concern on both sides of the case.
Related Resources:
- How to Get Out of Jury Duty? Mention Jeffrey Dahmer Friendship (MSNBC)
- Voir Dire (FindLaw’s LawBrain)
- Missing Jury Duty. What Happens? (FindLaw’s Blotter)
You Don’t Have To Solve This on Your Own – Get a Lawyer’s Help
Civil Rights
Block on Trump’s Asylum Ban Upheld by Supreme Court
Criminal
Judges Can Release Secret Grand Jury Records
Politicians Can’t Block Voters on Facebook, Court Rules
