New Mexico Statutes 38-5-2. Exemption from jury service; excusals; service of disqualified juror
A. A person who has served as a member of a petit jury panel or a grand jury in either state or federal courts within the preceding thirty-six months shall be exempt from sitting or serving as a juror in a court of this state when the person requests to be exempted from service by reason of the exemption granted by this subsection.
Terms Used In New Mexico Statutes 38-5-2
- Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
- Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
- Juror: A person who is on the jury.
- Petit jury: A group of citizens who hear the evidence presented by both sides at trial and determine the facts in dispute. Federal criminal juries consist of 12 persons. Federal civil juries consist of six persons.
- Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
B. A person who is seventy-five years of age or older who requests exemption from jury service with a local court shall be permanently exempt from jury service.
C. A person may be excused from jury service at the discretion of the judge or the judge’s designee, with or without the person’s personal attendance upon the court, if:
(1) jury service would cause undue or extreme physical or financial hardship to the prospective juror or to a person under the prospective juror’s care or supervision;
(2) the person has an emergency that renders the person unable to perform jury service; or
(3) the person presents other satisfactory evidence to the judge or the judge’s designee.
D. A person requesting an exemption or an excuse from jury service shall take all necessary action to obtain a ruling on the request no later than the date on which the person is scheduled to appear for jury duty.
E. The judge, in the judge’s discretion, upon granting any excuse, may disallow the fees and mileage of the person excused.
F. The service upon a jury of a person disqualified shall, of itself, not vitiate any indictment found or any verdict rendered by that jury, unless actual injury to the person complaining of the injury is shown.
G. As used in this section and Section 38-5-1 N.M. Stat. Ann., “undue or extreme physical or financial hardship”:
(1) means circumstances in which a person would:
(a) be required to abandon another person under the person’s care or supervision due to the extreme difficulty of obtaining an appropriate substitute caregiver during the period of jury service;
(b) incur costs that would have a substantial adverse impact on the payment of necessary daily living expenses of the person or the person’s dependent; or
(c) suffer physical hardship that would result in illness or disease; and
(2) does not exist solely because a prospective juror will be absent from employment.