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Jury Service General Information

[WS3] Home > Juror Services > General Information

Houston, Texas | March 12, 2010

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Contact Information

Harris County Jury Assembly:

Congress Plaza
1019 Congress
Houston, TX 77002

Hours:	Mon - Fri, 7 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Phone:	713-755-6392 (after 10 am)
Fax:	713-755-4899

For additional Juror information, please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) or e-mail us.

Juror General Information

EXEMPTIONS FROM JURY SERVICE (Gov’t Code, Section 62.106)

A person qualified to serve as a petit juror may establish an exemption from jury service if the person:
Is over 70 years of age; Has legal custody of a child younger than 15 years of age and the person’s service on the jury requires leaving the child without adequate supervision; Is a student of public or private secondary school; Is a person enrolled and in actual attendance at an institution of higher education; Is an officer or an employee of the senate, the House of Representatives, or any department, commission, board, office, or other agency in the legislative branch of state government; Is summoned for service and have served as a petit juror in Harris County during the current jury wheel reconstitution period. The current period began November 2, 2007. Summons prior to that date do not qualify for this exemption. (This exemption does not apply to Federal and Municipal Court jury service.) Is the primary caretaker of a person who is an invalid unable to care for himself; Is a member of the United States military forces serving on active duty and deployed to a location away from the person’s home station and out of the person’s county of residence.
You are not required to claim an exemption. It is your choice. Business reasons are NOT lawful excuses. Note: If you think you have a situation that may exempt you but is not on the form, you must appear on the date you’ve been summoned. Once assigned to court, you will have the opportunity to discuss your situation and be considered for exemption at that time.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR JURY SERVICE (Gov’t Code, Section 62.102)

A person is disqualified to serve as a petit juror unless the person:
Is at least 18 years of age; Is a citizen of this state and of the county in which the person is to serve as a juror; Is qualified under the constitution and laws to vote in the county in which the person is to serve as a juror; Is of sound mind and good moral character; Is able to read and write; Has not served as a petit juror for six days during the preceding three months in the county court or during the preceding six months in the district court; Has not been convicted of misdemeanor theft or a felony; and Is not under indictment or other legal accusation for misdemeanor theft or a felony.
Note: Persons claiming a disqualification based on the lack of citizenship or the lack of residence in the county may no longer be eligible to vote in the county. Claims of this kind will be reported to the Voter Registrar.

JUROR PARKING

Parking is available at the respective courthouse address noted on the summons for Justice of the Peace Courts. If you have been either summoned or selected for jury service downtown, you qualify for a discounted parking rate in the Congress Plaza parking garage, at 1019 Congress, , beginning on level 7. DO NOT PARK ON LEVELS 1-6. The discounted parking rate is $5.50 for the entire day. Please present the top portion of your jury summons along with your parking ticket to the cashier in the lobby before returning to your automobile each day of your jury service. Please pay the cashier in cash, check or credit card before you return to your automobile. There are no in/out privileges. Jurors are advised to pay in advance to avoid long lines and wait times.

Additional Parking: A new parking garage is open at 1401 Congress, , four blocks east of the Jury Assembly Room. Persons arriving prior to 8:00 a.m. qualify for a discounted rate of $4.00 per day. Those arriving after 8:00 a.m. will be charged $6.00 for the entire day if they show their badge or summons. You do not need to show your summons to park there. Vehicle entrances are on La Branch and Austin. This garage accepts only cash and you are required to pay upon entering the garage. There are no in/out privileges.

View a map of the downtown area.

METRO INFORMATION

Perhaps the easiest and the least expensive way to get to your jury service is to take the bus. Metro provides complimentary round trips to anyone going to jury duty on the original date of their summons. Simply show your jury summons when you get on the bus and your ride is free. If you don’t know what bus to take, contact Metro at (713) 635-4000 or www.ridemetro.org You’ll get all the information you need to get you to the right bus and home again.

ASSISTIVE LISTENING DEVICES

For persons with hearing impairments, the Harris County Jury Room offers the William Sound Plus WIR TX10 Infared transmitter, selectable 95 khz or 250 khz carrier. The system is designed to transmit high quality audio for hearing assistance and language interpretation applications.

Sign language and captioning are also provided upon request. Please contact Harris County Jury Assembly at (713) 755-6392 or via e-mail at jury@hcdistrictclerk.com at least one day before you are scheduled to appear. The District Clerk's office will contact the company that provides these two services and get assistance for you scheduled.

Disqualifications/Exemptions

View videos regarding juror disqualification or exemption.

Transportation & Parking Availability

See the General Information section for information regarding transportation & parking.

Justice of the Peace

Find information regarding the Justice of the Peace courts.

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