THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

205

TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to jury duty.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that while jury service is a duty that should be shared by all citizens, it is appropriate to allow individuals who have been summoned for jury duty to request an exemption where an individual has medical issues that make jury service an unusually heavy burden.  The legislature further finds that Hawaii's kupuna are more likely to be afflicted with medical issues as they age.  As a result, the legislature passed Act 313, Session Laws of Hawaii 2006, amending section 612-6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to allow individuals who are eighty years of age or older to request an exemption from jury service without going through the time and effort to provide medical information to the judiciary.

     The legislature finds that it is appropriate to lower the age threshold first set by Act 313, Session Laws of Hawaii 2006, in light of the fact that individuals in their seventies remain at an elevated risk for significant medical issues.  The legislature further emphasizes that individuals who qualify for an exemption due to age or any other reason under section 612-6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, are not required to claim the exemption.  The exemption is optional and individuals who exceed the minimum age for exemption may still elect to serve as a juror if summoned by the judiciary.

     The purpose of this Act is to reduce the minimum age for the age exemption from service as a juror.

     SECTION 2.  Section 612-6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§612-6  Exempt when.  A person may, but is not required to, claim exemption from service as a juror if the person is:

     (1)  An elected official while the legislature is in session, or a judge of the United States, State, or county;

     (2)  An actively practicing physician or dentist;

     (3)  A member of the armed forces or militia when on active service and deployed out-of-state;

     (4)  An active member of a police or fire department;

     (5)  A person who has served as a juror, either in a court of this State or the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii, within one year preceding the time of filling out the juror qualification form;

     (6)  An active member of an emergency medical services agency;

     (7)  A person living more than seventy miles from the court for which jury service is required;

     (8)  A person [eighty] seventy-five years of age or older; or

     (9)  A woman who is breastfeeding a child or expressing breast milk for a period of two years from the birth of the child.

     For purposes of this section, "emergency medical services agency" means any government agency, private agency, or company that provides ambulance services, emergency medical services, or disaster medical services."

     SECTION 3.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

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Report Title:

Jury Duty; Age Exemption

 

Description:

Reduces the minimum age from eighty to seventy-five years of age for the optional age exemption from service as a juror.

 

 

 

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