Only Some Oklahomans Are Allowed To Serve On Juries

stillthelaw:

  Oklahoma statutes direct the courts to use the list of those with a valid Oklahoma Drivers License, to use as a database of potential jurors. And anyone under 18 or over 70 is exempted. People who have an Oklahoma Identification card (obtained by the Dept of Public Safety) are also included on the database.

  In addition to that group, individuals who have neither the ID card or the drivers license, can go to the court clerk and volunteer their name to be added to the database. 

  You can only be compelled to serve once in any 5-year span. There are statutory exemptions as well as those granted special exemptions by a district court judge.

  Here’s a list of the statutory exemptions  C.  Persons who are not qualified to serve as jurors are:

1.  Justices of the Supreme Court or the Court of Civil Appeals; 2.  Judges of the Court of Criminal Appeals or the district court; 3.  Sheriffs or deputy sheriffs; 4.  Licensed attorneys engaged in the practice of law; 5.  Persons who have been convicted of any felony or who have served a term of imprisonment in any penitentiary, state or federal, for the commission of a felony; provided, any such citizen convicted, who has been fully restored to his or her civil rights, shall be eligible to serve as a juror; and 6.  Legislators during a session of the Legislature or when involved in state business.

D.  Jailers or law enforcement officers, municipal, state or federal, shall be eligible to serve on noncriminal actions only. E.  Upon his or her request, a person shall be exempt from service as a juror if the person is:

1.  A member of the Armed Forces of the United States who is serving on active duty during a time of war or declared hostilities; or 2.  A mother who is breast-feeding a baby.

§38-18.  Licensed drivers list - Time period - Volunteers - Name and address changes.

For the purpose of ascertaining names of all persons qualified for jury service: 1.  The Commissioner of Public Safety shall cause to be provided to the Administrative Director of the Courts, not later than the first day of October of each year, a list by county of residence of persons who reside in the county, who are eighteen (18) years of age or older, and who are holders of a current driver license or a current identification license issued by the Department of Public Safety.  The list shall contain the name, date of birth, and mailing address of each person listed.  The list may be maintained in electronic format and shall be used exclusively for jury selection purposes.  The Administrative Director of the Courts and the court clerk shall not copy or permit any person to copy the list or any portion thereof for purposes other than jury selection; 2.  All names and addresses of the persons so listed under the provisions of paragraph 1 of this section shall be used thereafter in the selection of juries; provided, however, no jury panel shall be quashed because of a duplication of names; 3.  The list will be furnished by the Administrative Director of the Courts to the district courts according to the period of time and in the format prescribed by the Administrative Director of the Courts, and the district courts may maintain and use the list in electronic format as a necessary part of an approved electronic jury management system implemented pursuant to Section 13 of this act; 4.  The provisions of this section shall not be construed to preclude persons otherwise qualified to serve as jurors from volunteering for jury service in a manner prescribed by the Administrative Director of the Courts; and 5.  The Administrative Director of the Courts, the trial court administrator or the court clerk may accept changes or corrections in a mailing address or county of residence of a qualified juror from such qualified juror or from an electronic address verification process implemented pursuant to Section 13 of this act.  Changes may be accepted in any manner prescribed by the Administrative Director of the Courts.

 Added by Laws 1949, p. 279, § 1, emerg. eff. June 2, 1949.  Amended by Laws 1973, c. 204, § 1, emerg. eff. May 17, 1973; Laws 1974, c. 136, § 1, emerg. eff. May 3, 1974; Laws 1985, c. 273, § 1; Laws 1987, c. 134, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 1987; Laws 1989, c. 348, § 20, eff. Oct. 1, 1989; Laws 1996, c. 58, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 1996; Laws 1997, c. 400, § 12, eff. July 1, 1997; Laws 2002, c. 390, § 14, emerg. eff. June 4, 2002; Laws 2003, c. 234, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2003; Laws 2015, c. 242, § 5, emerg. eff. May 4, 2015.