Jury Service
JURORS GUIDE
TO
Dauphin County
Court of Common Pleas
THE UNITED STATES AND PENNSYLVANIA CONSTITUTIONS GUARANTEE THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY. THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE JURY SYSTEM DEPENDS UPON CITIZENS' WILLINGNESS TO SERVE, AS WELL AS JURORS' ABILITY TO BE FAIR AND IMPARTIAL WHILE DECIDING THE FACTS AND APPLYING THE LAW.
Jury Service's Also include:
Dauphin County Juror Donation Program
The Dauphin County Juror Donation Program allows jurors to donate their compensation to one of the charities listed below and assist children in our community. This program is entirely voluntary and jurors may opt to receive payment for their service as a juror. Jurors are compensated for service at $9.00 per day for the first three days of service and $25.00 per day thereafter. They are also entitled to receive mileage for each day of service.
If a juror is interested, she/he may direct her/his entire compensation including mileage to any one of the following organizations:
Caitlin’s Smiles
The mission of Caitlin’s Smiles is to put smiles on the faces of children facing chronic or life threatening conditions by encouraging them to focus upon creative arts activities. “Bags of Smiles” are delivered to children staying overnight in hospitals and include such things as art kits, toys and drawing and modeling clay and other age appropriate art projects.
Make-A-Wish
The Make-A-Wish Program grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. A wish come true helps children feel stronger, more energetic, and more willing and able to battle their life-threatening medical conditions. Donations made benefit children within the region each donation is made.
Ronald McDonald House
The Ronald McDonald House in Hershey provides a temporary home-away-from-home for families of critically ill children being treated at Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital. All of their services are provided free of charge to families.
If a juror would like to donate her/his compensation to one of these organizations, she/he will be required to complete and sign a form. A receipt will be issued to her/him at the end of her/his service.
THE JURORS' CREED
(ADOPTED BY THE PENNSYLVANIA BAR ASSOCIATION)
- I am a juror. I accept the position not only as an honor but as my solemn duty.
- I will remember the men who died to give us, and retain for us, the right of trial by jury, and I will reflect upon the fate of those people whose government gives them no such right.
- I will act with the realization that the success of the jury system depends upon the willingness of men and women of integrity and intelligence to accept jury service, and upon the fidelity with which they discharge that responsibility.
- I will respect the judge, his or her education, training and experience.
- I will listen attentively to all the evidence, the arguments of counsel, and the judge's instructions, and will thoughtfully and impartially weigh the issues.
- During the trial, I will not discuss the case with others nor permit others to discuss it with me; neither will I read about it in the newspapers, nor listen to broadcasts about it.
- While hearing a case I will keep an open mind until the case is finally submitted to the jury.
- I will observe the legal procedure not as red tape, but as a device developed through thousands of years of protection of the people.
- I will consider all of the evidence fully and fairly uninfluenced by friendship, sympathy, bias or prejudice.
