There will no longer be forced balancing of jury boxes, according to Sheila Wells, clerk of the Polk Superior Court. Every resident who is at least 18-years-old, is a citizen of the county and votes or has a drivers license will be eligible for jury duty.
Georgia was the only state that required "forced balancing of jury pools," and the new state mandated jury system is designed to eliminate any opportunity for discrimination on any grounds.
The method for selecting grand jurors will also be changed. There will essentially be only one jury pool that consists of of persons that may be summed as trial jurors or grand jurors.
For local citizens this means there is a good chance they will be summoned as a juror or grand juror at some point.
After July 1, the role of jury commissioners will be to approve a juror's request to be permanently excused from jury service. By law those reasons include having reached the age of 70 or having a permanent mental disability confirmed by your doctor or psychiatrist.
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