Jury Duty

So, I just got a letter in the mail that I have Jury Duty.  I was a reserve juror years back but I never had to go in.  So, this is my first time.  My question is can I get out of this?  Do I have to go down there and if they call me tell them I have UC or do I call them and let them know?  I really don't even want to go down there.  I have had three accidents in the last month and my urgency is horrible.  I havent been doing well at all.  My husband can take me down there but I am not crazy about downtown cause of the  bathroom issue.  Oh, I live in Wisconsin.  Any advice/info would be great.  I think I jinksed myself my mom and I were just talking about this the beginning of the week because I have been getting bad.  She said a girl at her work that has Crohn's had to go down there and then tell them and they let her go. 

respond in writing - tell em what you got and how it's not real compatible with a trial - if you can get something from your doc, that would help -

or you might have go down there and tell me that sometimes you crap your pants, especially in stressful situations - that usually gives you a free pass out the door -

good luck -

when you got your jury letter in the mail, did it come with the paper you fill out/send back if you have an issue with doing jury duty? it's usually attached to the entire letter and you have to cut it off.

all you do is fill that out, send it in, and they send you back a letter that you have signed by your doctor. after your doctor signs it, mail it back in.

your doctor has the option of saying whether your condition is temporary or permanent. the temporary "boxes" he can check are, if i remember, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year. these correspond to when you could do jury duty... so like 3 months from now. my old GI kept checking the 3 months box so that's why i was summoned 3 times in 2012. it was so annoying because i was flaring most of the time. i got my new doctor (he has crohn's so he understands) to check the permanent condition box so i never have to do jury duty. that's a weight off my shoulders.

just tell them you are from Crapmypantsastan : )

I recently went through this situation. Before UC I served as an alternate in a jury, it was a great learning experience, but also emotionally taxing ( it was a murder trial). Now dealing with UC symptoms, I just didn't think I could do it. I asked my primary MD to write a note for me, she did, but it was done on a prescription pad. I promptly sent it to the court. The court then replied saying they needed a letter with more information from my MD in order to excuse me, things like prognosis, etc. Then I requested a letter from my GI who said, sure they will write a letter. Almost 3 months later, the office staff lost the court letter ( luckily I kept a copy which I dropped off as second time) and after several reminder calls I still had no letter. I know doctors are busy and there is no reimbursement fee for writing jury excuse letters, but you would think there would be a standard letter that they could just quickly edit, apparently no. I ended up writing my own letter, had the GIs office put it on their letterhead and signed by MD and actually had to drop it off in person to the court to meet their deadline. The GI office staff asked me if they could keep a copy for future use. I have not heard from the court almost 2 months later, so I guess it worked, for now at least.

Post Edited (NomasUC) : 3/23/2013 2:11:03 PM (GMT-6)

I was in a mild flare during jury duty a couple years ago. Didn't try to weasel out- they do have a restroom in the jury room. But I dont blame anyone for trying to sena doctor's note. With some judges, though, good luck with that.