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Stage 1 and 2 of Jury Duty. Jury districts, jury roll and pre-selection of jurors. Jury Districts (in Victoria).
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Stage 1 and 2 of Jury Duty Jury districts, jury roll and pre-selection of jurors
Jury Districts (in Victoria) • The Supreme Court and the County Court of Victoria hear cases in Melbourne and also at Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Hamilton, Horsham, Mildura, Sale, Shepparton, Wangaratta and Warrnambool. • The County Court of Victoria can also sit in Bairnsdale, Kerang and Morwell. • The electoral district or districts around each of these towns is called the jury district for that town. People who are enrolled in that district and get called upon to attend jury duty, may be selected for that particular region.
Am I eligible? • If a person is enrolled to the Australian Electoral Commission, (AEC) they are eligible to be selected for jury service. • When a person is selected for jury service however, the following factors will be taken into consideration. • - If the selected juror has a previous criminal record • -If the selected juror is in the legal profession • - If the selected juror is bankrupt (this may show that they are unreliable and may show bias if they were in a jury) • These factors can make a person be disqualified from jury service, as they may have too much depth into the reasons a person committed a crime or they have the likelihood of displaying bias or prejudice decisions if they were in a jury.
How Is The Jury Roll Prepared? • The Jury Commissioner notifies the Electoral Commissioner of the number of people estimated to be required for jury service for a particular district. The Jury Commissioner then send a questionnaire to the people and a ‘Notice Of Selection Form’ who have been chosen . It is an offence not to respond to the questionnaire. • The Jury Commissioner will then decide on • -liability for service • -disqualified (previous criminal record) • -ineligibility (cannot cope with the proceedings of the jury) • -excused for a good reason (travel distance, illness)
If a person is deemed liable for jury service, it is an offence not to attend when they are called upon. The Jury commissioner will have a pool of jurors for the Supreme and County courts from which jurors can be drawn at anytime.
What is the purpose of the Notice Of Selection for Jury Service form? • This is to notify the selected jurorto ensure that they understand when they are meant to attend court and the conditions and responsibilities that they may have to undertake. The dates that the person will be required to attend court will be written on the form.
What is the purpose of Jury Eligibility Questionnaire? • This Jury Questionnaire is done to ascertain weather a person is eligible to be in a jury or if there is any reason why they cannot serve. • It is an offence to not answer the questionnaire and return it back to the sheriff within 7 days. • It is in this stage were they Jury Commissioner will decide the eligibility of the person. • This can be completed online or sent to homes and done via hardcopy