Justice committee  Unfortunately, that's probably the area where implementation has not worked so well, because it tends to be very ad hoc. Texas and Alaska have both enacted legislation that essentially grants the local clerk of court the authority to create a mental health or a juror support prog

Justice committee  I've heard judges who have talked about this. I think the universal consensus here in the United States is that it would be interference with the jury process itself to have anyone reaching out to the jurors. If the juror were experiencing such high stress, it would most likely b

Justice committee  I can weigh in a little bit. In the United States about eight states have enacted legislation that requires employers to compensate employees who are summoned for jury service with their regular wages for a certain period of time. Typically it's about three to five days, so up to

Justice committee  It's the United States, and states' rights are important. The federal law just basically does not get involved in state rules about employer compensation.

Justice committee  Actually, a lot of state court judges now make a point of meeting with the jurors after the trial is over, not in a semi-formal environment but an environment that is less formal than a courtroom, first of all just to say, “Thank you for being here”, and also to answer any questi

Justice committee  I apologize. For some reason, the lights are going crazy.

Justice committee  Just to answer your question, I'm quite struck, because that was our experience, too, that about 10% of jurors actually experienced high levels of stress. I think the similarity in those percentages is quite telling. The symptoms might not clinically be PTSD, but certainly simila

Justice committee  That's been one of the big drawbacks and criticisms of the debriefing after trial: that jurors, particularly after a long trial or a trial that's been particularly difficult, are usually exhausted and just kind of numb from the experience. As to having that debriefing immediately

Justice committee  The financial hardship is a big problem I think everywhere. I'm particularly delighted to hear that England and Wales pay up to £100 a day. That is many times more than most state courts pay here. Typically the average juror payment is about $22 a day across the states, with some

Justice committee  It may be, but this is just sort of example of a way of treating stress with caffeine or alcohol or nicotine that can actually raise the anxiety level.

Justice committee  Okay. I'm sorry I missed your two other speakers. I could see them on video and I would love to have hear what they said. My name is Paula Hannaford-Agor. I'm the director of the Center for Jury Studies at the National Center for State Courts. We're headquartered in Williamsbur

Justice committee  Yes, I can. Thank you.