You ARE the Brute Squad

Something about this FAQ entry amuses me:

Q.  Whom should I notify in the event I cannot appear for juror service?

A. You may call the juror information number (1-800-THE-JURY)…

If you have any trouble, just call The Jury.  There’s only one, and it has an 800 number.

That’s right – three months after I informed the State of Vermont I couldn’t serve on a jury in a state that’s four hours away, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts offered to put me to good use.  I’m even 30% sure they’re aware I’m qualified to serve here based on their e-mail response to me:

The Office of Jury Commissioner has received your submission confirming that you are qualified for juror service, and that you do not wish to change your service date or location.  Your submission will be processed shortly.  In 1-2 business days you will receive a notification that your confirmation has been processed.  Approximately 10 days prior to your scheduled service we will mail you a Reminder Notice.

It’s really quite clear. First they sent me a confirmation that I’ve submitted confirmation of qualification, but some time in the future they’ll send me a confirmation notification that they’ve processed my confirmation of qualification successfully.

Despite the awkward wording and the somewhat retro site design, I give Massachusetts big points for integrating Google Maps.  After entering my badge number to get to the inner website I found a link to get directions to the courthouse.  I expected at best a map with a star where the courthouse is, but found instead point-to-point directions from my apartment.  This is a government website.  They know where I live.

3 thoughts on “You ARE the Brute Squad

  1. Sam Olsen says:

    Well at least they are putting our tax dollars to good use! Just think how many more postal workers are able to be employed thanks to that brilliant system!

  2. Ben says:

    None so far. They mailed the summons, but then I gave them my e-mail address and both confirmations have come by e-mail.

  3. just pixels says:

    Why can’t they drive you there in a LimoLiner? Of course, if it breaks down they might end up with 12 angry jurors.

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