Jury Reform

In 1997, the New Mexico Supreme Court conducted a public opinion survey and discovered that one area which needed reform was jury service. The consensus was that the term of service which was traditionally six months, needed to be changed to a shorter time period. In McKinley County, the term of service has been shortened to 1(one) month.

Jury Service

Trial by jury is the American democratic way of administering justice. In criminal cases, jurors decide whether a person should be deprived of his life or liberty. Many disputes between one person and another, such as a suit for damages caused by an accident and suit on many important contracts, are also decided by a jury. Consequently, jurors constitute an essential part of the judicial system.

By serving on a jury a person performs one of the most important obligations of American citizenship, perhaps the most vital duty next to fighting in defense of one's country. No doubt many jurors suffer inconvenience because of their service, and some even make considerable sacrifice and perhaps undergo hardship. This contribution is necessary, however, in order to maintain our institutions.

Therefore, persons called for jury duty should not ask to be excused except for important and urgent reasons. Nor should employers request that their employees be released except for some grave cause.

The Court tries to reduce inconvenience to the jurors as reasonably as possible, and jurors are only required to remain on hand when it is absolutely necessary.

Jurors should realize the importance of the part that they take in the search of justice. They should perform their duties conscientiously, seriously, fairly, and impartially, without being swayed by sentiment or emotion, or being influenced by any prejudice, likes or dislikes. They must decide the case entirely on the evidence presented to them and follow the instructions of the Court as the law.

In some respects a juror's duty is like that of a Judge. In cases in which a judge acts without a jury, he decides both what are the facts and what is the law which governs. But in cases in which the trial is before a judge and jury, the judge decides the law, and the jury decides what are the facts. Since in many cases the facts are the most disputed questions to be decided, the importance of the juror's duty is apparent.

Do we have to come to every Trial on our Calendar?

At the beginning of the juror's term, the Court Clerk will mail a calendar indicating the dates and times the juror needs to appear. There will be many trials scheduled during the 1(one) month period, however, the majority of those trials will be cancelled. In criminal cases, the defendant may enter into a plea agreement with the State, and therefore a jury trial is not needed. In civil matters, the parties in dispute may reach a settlement agreement and the jury trial setting will be cancelled. Therefore it is very important that the juror telephone the Jury Code-a-Phone the night before the trial date.

THE JURY CODE-A-PHONE NUMBERS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

(LOCAL) 722-4758

(OUT-OF-TOWN) 1-800-748-0822

The phone numbers mentioned above, will have a pre-recorded message which will tell the juror whether or not their presence is required for the next day's trial.

In addition to trials being cancelled on short notice, there are occasions where the Court will be required to have a jury trial on short notice. Therefore, we ask that the juror call the above numbers each Friday to determine if a trial has been scheduled which was not on their printed calendar.

If the juror encounters an emergency which requires an excuse from a trial, please contact the Jury Clerk at 863-6816.

Payment for Service

Each juror will be paid minimum wage for each hour they are required to appear. Those jurors who live farther than 15 miles round trip, will be paid an additional 35 cents per mile for their travel to the Courthouse.

Since payment vouchers are submitted to the Department of Finance and Administration in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a few days after each trial, payment usually takes 4 to 6 weeks for the juror to receive. The Department of Finance and Administration is the agency responsible for paying all vendors for the State agencies in New Mexico.