Jury Duty is one of the most important duties a citizen is asked to perform for his or her county.
Jury orientation video
Jury Service
Prepares and issues summons for Jury Duty, provides juror reporting information, and assist jurors with excusal, exemptions, registration, and compensation.
Daily Reporting Information
All jurors are to report to the Courtroom Annex, Richard O. Watson Judicial Center, 4010 Lewis Speedway, St Augustine, FL 32084. Click here for a map of the complex. Please refer to your jury summons for the time that you are summoned to appear. When seeking information pertaining to jury duty after 5:00 pm or on the weekends, please call (904) 819-3631. This message will contain important attendance information pertaining to the next jury duty period, attendance dates and times will be listed within the message.
Requests for Accommodations by Persons with Disabilities
If you are a person with a disability who needs accommodation in order to participate in this proceeding, you are entitled, at no cost to you, to the provision of certain assistance. Please contact the Clerk of Court, Richard O. Watson Judicial Center, 4010 Lewis Speedway, St Augustine, FL 32084, (904) 819-3629, at least 7 days before your scheduled court appearance, or immediately upon receiving this notification if the time before your scheduled court appearance is less than 7 days; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call 1-800-955-8771. THESE ARE NOT COURT INFORMATION NUMBERS.
Jury Duty
Jury venires are drawn at random, as of January 1, 1998, from the rolls of the State of Florida’s Division of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicle’s current driver's license or Florida I.D. holders. If you fail to report for jury duty and have not obtained a granted excusal or postponement letter, you may be found in contempt of court; the presiding judge will determine contempt. It is in your best interest to make every effort to appear or to request an excusal or postponement in advance of service.
In order to be eligible for jury duty you must:
- Be an American citizen
- Have legal residence within St Johns County
- Be at least 18 years of age
Request for Excusal
The following persons, upon written request, may be excused from jury service:
(Please Use the eResponse link at the top of this page to submit your request.)
- Expectant mothers.
- A parent, who is not employed full time, and has custody of a child under 6 years of age.
- A person who was summoned and who reported as a prospective juror in this county within the previous year.
- A person 70 years of age or older.
- A person responsible for the care of another who because of mental or physical incapacity is incapable of caring for their self.
- A full-time federal, state or local law enforcement officer
- A presiding judge may, in his/her discretion, excuse a person showing evidence of hardship, extreme inconvenience or public necessity.
- A presiding judge may, in his/her discretion, excuse a practicing attorney, a practicing physician or a person who is physically infirm from jury service. A deaf or hearing-impaired individual may not be excluded from service on a trial jury solely on the basis of hearing impairment if that person wishes to serve. However, the presiding judge may find that consideration of the evidence to be presented requires auditory discrimination or that the timely progression of the trial will be considerably affected.
The following persons have a mandatory disqualification from jury service, upon written request:
- Any convicted felon, civil rights not restored.
- Any person currently under prosecution for any crime.
- Any person no longer residing in St Johns County.
All request forms should be mailed, faxed or emailed to the Jury Coordinator.
Compensation
Jurors who are regularly employed and who continue to receive regular wages while serving as a juror, will not be compensated for the first three days of jury service. Jurors who are not regularly employed or who do not continue to receive regular wages while serving as a juror, are entitled to receive $15 per day for the first three days of jury service. Regular employment includes full-time employment and part-time, temporary, and casual employment as long as the employment hours of a juror can be reasonably determined by a schedule or by custom and practice established during a three-month period preceding the term of service as a juror. Each juror who serves more than three days will be paid by the state for the fourth day of service and each day thereafter at the rate of $30 per day.
It is very important that prior to reporting you ascertain the policy of your employer concerning payment of wages while on jury duty.
Terms of Service
If you are scheduled to report on Monday, it is possible your term of service will be for Monday only. If you are selected as a juror, your term will be through the completion of the trial. Trial terms can last one day, several days, and up to two weeks; this depends on the trial and will be specified by the judge at the beginning of the selection. A person who has reported as a prospective juror is exempt from jury service for one year from the last day of service.
Attire and General Information
Please use good judgment and dress in a conservative manner that is appropriate for appearance in a court of law. Business attire is suggested. You may bring a sweater since temperatures in the courtrooms are unpredictable.Shorts, tee shirts and flip-flops are not appropriate attire.
- Be prepared to stay the entire day.
- Do not bring newspapers.
- You may bring a book or magazine to read.
- Laptop Computers, game devices (with headphones), and music players (with headphones) are allowed.
The right to a trial by jury is one of the principles guaranteed by the Constitution. It is the duty of every citizen to serve when called to do so.
Jury Duty Scam
Identity thieves are using a 'Jury Duty Scam' to obtain personal information from citizens throughout Florida. The scammers are telephoning individuals and mailing notices identifying themselves as local court employees and advising these individuals they failed to report for jury duty. In many cases the scammer indicates a warrant has been issued for their arrest and requests the individual to provide personal information such as Social Security number and date of birth for 'verification' purposes. Additionally, some scammers are seeking payment of a bond or fine for failure to appear for jury duty.
Clerk's Office employees within the Jury Management division never make such calls and will never request payment for failure to appear. Initial notifications, as well as follow-up notices, are processed through the US Postal Service. Failure to appear for jury duty will require attendance in court, prior to any penalties being imposed. Clerk's Office employees will, however, respond by telephone to a prospective juror's inquiry if requested.
Please avoid becoming a victim of this type of identity theft scam by simply refusing to provide the information requested by the caller.
Jury Services Contact Information
St. Johns County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller
Jury Management
4010 Lewis Speedway
St. Augustine, FL 32084
ph: (904) 819-3629
after hours message ph: (904) 819-3631
fax: (904) 819-3666
St. Johns County Clerk of Court