Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler must report to the Multnomah County Courthouse next Wednesday for jury duty.
Wheeler — just like 150 to 200 other county residents on any given day — got called for service. He’ll “show up just like everyone else,” said Michael Cox, a spokesman for the mayor.
“He’s going to do his civic duty,” Cox said.
In Multnomah County, potential jurors are told to report to the jury assembly room for up to two days as part of a pool of people who could be assigned to trials that are about to begin. If selected for trial, they must serve the entire length of trial, whether it’s for days or weeks.
Wheeler’s prominent leadership position doesn’t mean he’ll get an automatic pass to sit on a jury. Judges can dismiss people if they know the parties — the plaintiffs or the defendants — involved in the trial.
Potential jurors also can ask to be excused if serving would create an “undue hardship,” such as seriously hindering obligations or the need to care for a relative or child. But a judge has the ability to deny such requests based on the individual circumstances.
A lack of qualified jurors has prompted trial attorneys to make some surprising choices in the past: defense attorneys, judges and even sheriff’s deputies all have sat on juries.
Jurors are randomly summoned to report for duty by using driver’s license and registered voter records. State law generally prohibits jurors from being called on more than once every two years, but some residents go decades without ever receiving a summons.
— Aimee Green
agreen@oregonian.com
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