Jury service

Community patrollers are qualified to serve as jurors unless they belong to one of the categories of persons who may not serve on a jury.

Anyone may be excused from jury service if the Judge is satisfied that they are personally concerned in the facts of the case, or closely connected with one of the parties or with one of the prospective witnesses.

Examples that might result in a community patroller being excused jury service include:

• witnessing the incident or arrest of the defendant
• patrolling on the night of the incident and being involved in looking out for the defendant
• being involved in a discussion about the incident or defendant
• the patrol's police liaison officer is involved in the case
• being friendly with a police officer involved in the case
• a patroller from the same community patrol is the complainant, a witness or defendant in the case

Before the selection of jurors for the trial, the defendant is introduced and the case is outlined. Jurors are then balloted and may be challenged by either the defence or prosecution. A community patroller who knows of a conflict of interest and is not challenged before reaching the jurors' box is obligated to indicate to the judge any potential conflict of interest.

A community patroller who is summoned to attend as a juror can seek to be excused if there is only one case to be heard and they have a conflict of interest.

A community patroller who is unsure if they have a conflict of interest can seek advice from their local prosecutions section.

In some circumstances, jury service can be deferred, for example if you are going to be out of town or have an important deadline at work.

The Law - Juries Act 1981

6 Qualification and Liability

Every person who is currently registered as an elector in accordance with the Electoral Act 1993 is qualified and liable to serve as a juror upon all juries that may be empanelled for any trial within the jury district in which the person resides. This section is subject to sections 7 and 8.

7 Disqualification

The following persons are not qualified to serve on any jury in any Court on any occasion:

1. Any one who, at any time, has been sentenced to imprisonment for life or for a term of 3 years or more, or to preventive detention:
2. Any one who, at any time within the preceding 5 years, has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 3 months or more, or to corrective training.

8 Certain persons not to serve

The following persons shall not serve on any jury in any Court on any occasion:

(aa) the Governor-General:

(a) Members of the Executive Council of New Zealand:

(b) Members of the House of Representatives:

(c) Judges of the High Court, Masters of the High Court, Judges of the Employment Court, Judges and Commissioners of the Maori Land Court, District Court Judges and Community Magistrates:

(d) Visiting Justices under the Corrections Act 2004, and members of the Parole Board:

(e) Justices who have agreed to make themselves available from time to time to exercise the summary jurisdiction of District Courts:

(f) lawyers within the meaning of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006:

(g) employees of the Police, and Traffic Officers:

(h) an employee of the Public Service who is employed—

1. in the Ministry of Justice; or
2. in the Department of Corrections; or
3. Repealed.
4. as an officer of the High Court or of a District Court; or

(haa) employees of the Legal Services Agency continued by section 91 of the Legal Services Act 2000 (but nothing in this paragraph applies to members of—

1. the Board of that Agency; or
2. the Review Panel established under section 62 of that Act; or
3. the Public Advisory Committee established under Part 7 of that Act):

(ha) a party to a prison management contract entered into under section 198(1) of the Corrections Act 2004 or to a security contract entered into under section 166 of the Corrections Act 2004; or

(hb) a security officer within the meaning of section 3(1) of the Corrections Act 2004.

(i) Repealed.

(j) Repealed.

(k) persons with an intellectual disability.

14B Deferral of jury service

1. The Registrar may permit a person summoned to attend as a juror on an occasion to defer that person's attendance to serve as a juror to a time within a period that —
   1. starts at least 8 weeks, and ends no later than 1 year, after the date on which the person is required to attend under the summons; and
   2. is specified by the Registrar but lasts for at least 1 month; and
   3. the person has indicated would be a more convenient period for the commencement of any jury service of that person that may result from the person having been summoned to attend as a juror.
2. However, the Registrar may exercise that power—
   1. only in respect of a summons that is not a replacement summons under section 14C(1)(d); and
   2. only once for each summons of that kind; and
   3. only if satisfied, on a written application for the purpose made by or on behalf of that person, that, because of 1 or more matters specified in subsection (3), attendance on that occasion would cause or result in undue hardship or serious inconvenience to that person, any other person, or the general public.
3. The matters referred to in subsection (2)(c) (and in section 15(1A)(a) and (c)) are —
   1. the nature of that person's occupation or business, or of any special and pressing commitment arising in the course of that person's occupation or business:
   2. that person's disability:
   3. that person's state of health, or family commitments, or other personal circumstances.

16 Judge may excuse from jury service

A Judge, on application made to him by or on behalf of any person summoned to attend as a juror on any occasion in the Court in which the Judge sits, may excuse that person from attending on that occasion —

1. On any ground on which the Registrar could have excused that person under section 15 of this Act, whether or not the Registrar had declined to excuse that person under that section or to permit that person to defer jury service under section 14B:
2. Where the panel has been compiled in respect of 1 trial only, if the Judge is satisfied that the person is personally concerned in the facts of the case, or is closely connected with one of the parties or with one of the prospective witnesses:
3. If the Judge is satisfied that the person objects to jury service on grounds of conscience, whether or not of a religious character.