A proposal moving through the Legislature could significantly change how New Jersey’s state courts select their jurors for criminal and civil trials.
Social justice advocates are pressing lawmakers to pass legislation that, for one, would allow those with criminal convictions to serve out their civic obligation. New Jersey remains one of only a handful in the country that bans anyone who’s been convicted of an indictable offense from jury duty for life.
But, the move still faces several hurdles. A previous version that would have continued to ban violent offenders did move through the Assembly committee in the last session but died in the lame-duck session.
“Currently, in New Jersey, we have a lifetime ban for jury service eligibility for anyone with a prior conviction,” said Emily Schwartz, the senior counsel for the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice. “And what that amounts to is 7% of the entire New Jersey population, but also 23 to 29% of all black New Jerseyans [who] can never serve on a jury.”
“We know that the criminal legal system disproportionately affects Black and brown people in New Jersey,” she said. “But what we’re seeing by having a lifelong ban is that it’s whitewashing our jury pools.”
Gubernatorial candidate and state Sen. Jon Bramnick (R-Union) has strongly opposed the bill: “There are certain violent crimes that you’re going to pay a long-term price for, and that price might be for life, when it comes to sitting on a jury.”
