October 22, 2020
The mail arrived the other day and there it was, the blue, slightly larger than letter-size envelope with the words “JURY SUMMONS ENCLOSED” blazoned on the front. I was being called for jury duty at federal district court just as the upturn in the curve indicated an increase in Covid-19 cases. But, unlike in the past, where the envelope’s contents provided little guidance as to what the process of jury selection would entail, it now included a personal letter from the Chief Judge describing the steps the court is taking to protect jurors from Covid. It also contained a questionnaire aimed at determining whether I might be infected with Covid or might present a danger of infecting others – questions that now are all too familiar but are new to the process of jury service. [...]