I’ve been called to do jury service in early December and have had my initial request for exemption turned down-I must now appeal. Is AF not considered an adequate reason for exemption given that there appears to be no masking or distancing in court?
Jury Service: I’ve been called to do... - Atrial Fibrillati...
Jury Service
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Samazeuilh2
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An interesting question with probably an even more interesting answer, only problem is I haven’t got a clue……watch this space!
I would say that it was all day long. If you had an Afib attack whether it is elongated or intermittent then it would interfere with your ability to concentrate on what could be a life changing case. My take is that anything that could interfere with justice has to be addressed. I was out today and my Afib was start/stop/ on and off for a few hours, which is often enough to stop you thinking clearly.
(RAISING HAND DURING IMPORTANT TESTIMONY) "Excuse me your honor, but my HR just shot up to 180... feel a bit light headed and dizzy... can anyone ring 111 for me?"
Jim
That is pretty much what you have to do. You attract the attention of the usher s/he comes to you and you say you are I'll. Court ceases while you sort yourself out. If that impacts on the jury someone will take a view. if you are ill on one of the days you are due in to be a juror you need some kind of proof (drs note I guess- the courts will advise on this aspect)
... this is in England.
My husband and I never saw a single case when we were called at different times so fairly boring waste of time for both of us and very disappointing. Some years before my paroxysmal AF arrived though.
Yes, I was up for 2 weeks but only did 6 days (2 cases). Many people were not ' drawn out of the hat'.
I did find a good wool shop and some shoes I needed when allowed out but no experience of actual jury service which I’d been looking forward to!
My cases were interesting (and were 'serious' crimes) but my cousin for instance sat in on a case - only one case for her time there, which was very traumatic, and she never speaks of it. It just depends of course...
My step-daughter has been called twice and the second time she was chosen as forman (or woman) because of her previous experience!!
Yes, that could literally happen!
I would have thought it would depend upon how debilitated you are in AF? Maybe go see your GP and ask for medical exemption letter? They will probably charge you but if your doctor advises against they cannot really argue against that. I was called 3 times and got exempted every time.
I rang the surgery and they said a letter would cost £36. The problem is that it might be too late for the court to respond to by early December (the proposed date of the jury service). An alternative is simply a list of conditions which can be sent immediately. I will have to discuss further what they want me to do.
And a friend of mine had to wait 6 weeks to get a letter, so frustrating. Hope you find a way.
Hey Sam, it sounds like it’s not on their ‘list’ of exemptions, but that’s possibly because AF is a condition a lot of people live normal lives with? Personally when my PAF comes on, it incapacitates me because of the high rate, so it could cause me to be unreliable if I were on jury service. I have a friend who has a medical condition that would make her unable to reliably be in court (or well enough to sit there and concentrate) and her GP wrote her a letter (she had to pay a fee for it) to submit to the court to get an exemption. They gave the exemption with no argument. I assume the last thing they want is a flaky juror!
I think you’re talking more about reasons why you might prefer not to be in court for medical vulnerability reasons, and that may be another argument you can try. Though I expect they’re more likely to be swayed by the threat of disruption of the case! Either way I imagine a GP letter might be needed.
Good luck - Do let us know! Jx
I don't understand why you're not exempt because you have AF. Being under stress (and you certainly would be being a juror) could easily set off an attack. People who say they could cope with an AF attack, well you're lucky to have it so mild. Jean
I might be wrong, but I think that so many people have AF that they don’t like to exempt them because it would greatly reduce the pool of potential jurors. If it was a rarer condition it might be a different matter.
Distancing for what ? Others can’t catch your AF.
To reduce risk of contracting covid,which none of us AFibbers can do with.
Could you not choose to wear an FFP2 or preferably FFP3 graded mask in court if you are not exempted?
I’ve now been exempted! I got an apology. You are right about the FFP3- this would have been the best option if I had had to go.
Glad to hear you don't have to do this. many years ago I turned up I think it was every day for 2 weeks at Oxford but was never once chosen and this happened twice within a short time span - it was a pain. Same thing happened to my daughter-in-law in Reading recently. I didn't really want to take part but my daughter-in-law was looking forward to it.
I would have enjoyed it 10 years ago, but having AF and with Covid still around that’s not the case!
Yes I wouldn't want to do all of it again now either it would just muck up my days - not that I do much of any importance anyway! 
This proves yet again how the jury system like the majority of our judges and lawmakers are totally out of touch with reality especially the ordinary decent people of this country . Whoever replied does not know their arse from their AF and you have to remember that power goes to their tiny brains.
Yes, you are right. It would be more sensible if they asked for a GP address and telephone number on the form, then they could contact the GP or not based on the other information provided.
I did Jury service and loved it, 2 weeks off work, all expenses paid, it was great 👍
I longed to do jury service when younger, it sounded so interesting. These days I tend to avoid watching anything on tv that contains violence and don't think I could cope with being a jury member now. Some trials probably show shocking evidence, nope not for me!
Jean
I was the same, I loved the idea of being part of reaching a verdict that brought justice for a crime but since becoming a mum, I don’t think I could do it - especially if it was a case that related to children or something horrific because I couldn’t bare to know beyond doubt just how awful a small minority of people in this country are!
I know it’s a bit of a silly logic because it doesn’t stop that sort of thing from happening or those individuals from existing!!
We'd be saying 'Off with their head'. Especially those who batter children and babies to death. Grr. 😢
in reply to jeanjeannie50
I can understand why anyone would think that once the case is proven but not a good if a juror has pre conceived opinions……just saying
baba in reply to
What about your opinions that got a post on here closed down, based on the use of brand name for medication, excessive use of emoticons, and daring to ask a valid question on the same day they joined the forum....just saying!
in reply to baba
Have you checked out the recent reminder from admin regarding the forum rules. Amongst other things, it explains why they are necessary and the methods which are used to monitor forum content. Any information they receive, whether it’s from a member or a volunteer moderator, is assessed by the forum management team because only they can decide what action to take if any, once they have completed their investigations. Whether it’s a volunteer moderator or a forum member who reports a post, there could, of course be ulterior motives at play which makes it even more important that they check the facts themselves. Since this monitoring process was put in place several years ago, I have instigated only a very small number of reports and have never received and feedback, nor would I expected to, so now you know as much about this particular situation as I do so please direct any further comments to admin……
Prior to AF I would have enjoyed doing it too.
I was asked to present for jury service but I declined. At the time my AF was very symptomatic and I stated ,with a back up letter from my GP,that I couldn't guarantee attendance consistently.
Hi
How exciting.
Best to get a Dr's letter to explain. It could be the steep anxiety that you and Dr will worry about that will/could cause a problem with a bad AF event.
cheri JOY. 74. (NZ)
I appealed against jury service last year and was given an exemption straight away, I did explain in my appeal that any stressful situation was likely to bring on my AF and that during an AF attack I tended to need the toilet VERY regularly (sometimes every 30 mins or so) - perhaps that did the trick !
Yes, I think the last item would certainly deter them.
It appears to me that your medication is not working. While I was never called for jury service in the years I could be, my AF was controlled by medication. During my years of AF I chaired a planning committee on a large city authority and was vice-chairman of a police authority. My AF and Asthma were well controlled.
Hi Thomas
Some people are never free from AF by taking pills. They have to make do with the best medication they can find. PAF is one of the prime examples, because something like stress, overdoing it in the garden, or even for no reason at all, their AF can suddenly kick off at a high rate. This can make them feel quite ill and need frequent trips to empty their bladder. I was often admitted to a hospital ward. I'm really surprised that you aren't aware of this, it seems you've been on this forum for quite a while.
You are very lucky to be taking a pill that works so well.
Jean
True, but that's not everyone with AF.
Hi, seems daft, cos as people point out AF can stop you functioning fully for periods of time which would be useless in a jury trial lasting days. Also if you get giddy spells from AF, DVLA would stop you driving so why would jury be different. I've done jury service 3 times and they can be long hard days listening and paying attention to sometimes very intricate cases. Try to talk to GP and get him or consultant to write in support.
Well, as AF doesn't stop folk from driving, flying etc, I'm guessing that's why it wouldn't be a condition that would get you out of jury service. As for distancing etc, I still wear a mask when shopping and when using the train. Presume you would be able to wear a mask if you were in close proximity to others in the court.
You are likely to be sat for hours on end in a passive manner and we all know that just being in bed can set it off. Strangely enough when I've had it during the night, it has only disappeared when I have done my normal daily moving around which is not the same as getting out of bed and pacing up and down.
I am in the US. My EP did a letter to exempt me.
I've been permanently exempted from jury duty due to afib for about 25-30 years. I told them when I go into afib I have to urinate uncontrollably.
As a retired magistrate the most important aspect of dealing with cases is the ability to concentrate. As an AF sufferer my doctor told me one of the effects during an AF episode is the lack of ability to concentrate.
Just send an info email before attending saying that one sometimes suffers from uncontrolled flatulence (just so theres a note for the record) . Night before first day of service......large curry , save a bit for breakfast too.......................
I got exemption with A F reason I gave was having anxiety episodes and was accepted
Many years ago I was called for jury service and I told them that I get very upset at hearing about violence but I would be happy to sit on cases of fraud etc. They decided they could dispense with my services!
Get a letter from your GP or cardiologist - AFib may be stress affected, if you have other health factors to bring into consideration they should accept the medics opinion
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