Have any of you got an exemption from jury duty due to your diabetes? It’s not so much I want to avoid doing it, but mainly because there are no cells, carmeras, electronic equipment allowed PERIOD in the court house…so Im sure that would include my blood glucose monitor and also I have really bad hypoglycemia unawareness, my bs can drop down to the 40’s and I will be totally asymptomatic other than I might just start feeling a little warm Well at least around here anyway its sticky and muggy 99% of the time anyway this time of the year I feel “warm” even with normal bs levels so that’s not a really good indicator.
Just wondering what anyone else’s experiences might be like and if you tried to claim an exemption. I know I sound kinda bad and I like NEVER use diabetes as an excuse to get out of something, but this is a fairly large city…I don’t really want to go risking drops or highs because I can’t test as frequently as I need to or I have to eat out with nothing but high carb options available…or have to cut back considerably so I don’t go low. No Im not on a pump yet…and even though Lantus is supposed to keep you at a pretty even level, Im still getting a lot of low’s on it.
I work investigating car accidents for an insurance company. We don’t go to court that often but I’ve been a couple of times and they didn’t hassle me about my pump/ meter at all. I enjoyed watching trials as a lot of times, the cases settle ahead of time and it’s interesting to see how it plays out. I’ve read about other people getting out of it though.
Thanks for your reply. I guess my main concern is just my tendency to drop very easily and that has gotten worse over the years and being totally unaware. I guess I will see how it goes,
I just received a summons for Grand Jury for the month of October. My concern is frequent bathroom breaks but I am over 65 and I think I will be excused
Yes I agree and that was more or less the point I was attempting to make in my letter is that it requires me frequent testing to avoid having lows and if I need to eat I need to eat now. Yes they may allow me to keep my medications and equipment with me, but really if I have to stop to eat and Im on a jury. Its a distraction for everyone involved. I mean if I have to I have to, I’d just prefer not to and not have to potentialy be like excuse me while I go scarf down some food NOW.
Also DMV IF necessary would make me get certified by my doctor that I am safe to drive, when I first got my license I had to get it certified every few years and then with no incidents after a while DMV quit requiring me to do it. That is one thing I am very cautious about, esp as I’ve gotten older and my hypo’s are less symptomatic is making sure Im good before I drive, take my stuff with me and always always have some quick glucose tabs or some kind of quick bit of food on me at all times.
I believe that jury duty is an important civic duty. That being said I would let the court decide. I would start by telling the judge that you are diabetic and that you are willing to serve. I would then ask the judge if the court is willing to accomadiate my needs as a diabetic. Be prepared to explain your need to test frequently if necessary and inject insulin or treat lows if necessary. Let him know that you have concerns about you diet and about it’s effect on yor BS control. I woud end by letting him or her know that you are willing to serve if the court is willing to consider your needs.
If you do end up serving you will have done something for which you can be proud and will certaintly have my respect.
Amazing. I just had jury duty yesterday. I had to give up my phones due to security, but I brought all the rest of my diabetes supplies, meter, insulin and something to eat. The jury room had free wireless so I could post to tudiabetes while I waited. They even had snacks available in vending machines and a short walk from a cafeteria.
Diabetes, even if you require testing dozens of times a day, should not keep you from serving.
Huh? Why is it easier to sit for long periods of time with a pump?? Yikes, that is news to me.
I’ve served on jury duty with my pump and brought everything I need to my chair while I served. No one cared, or was even aware. Lunch was at lunch time, breaks were provided, and I survived just fine. I think smokers had more trouble serving, sitting still, and not watching that clock!
Maybe I shouldn’t try to make brief answers. I use MDI and a pump both, easy for me to compare them – for me. I have to do a lot more fiddling around (not paying attention to things going on around me?) on MDI than on the pump. On MDI, I go both high and low more. Since I can’t tell the difference between high or low, that is I feel off but don’t know which way my BS is going, at least for a while, I monitor more. I snack more on MDI. More corrections on MDI, which means drawing up insulin in a syringe equals more fiddling around than just pushing the buttons on the pump. OK, maybe it’s just me, but I’d have an awful time trying to sit still on MDI, more comfortable sitting still and paying attention on a pump. (My experience is with meetings rather than jury duty.)
At this point is just a jury questionaire basically wanting to know when the last time you have served was and even if I am selected there’s no guarantee your number will be picked to come in. I have been on it years ago and it was just a LONG drawn out experience here, and if Im recalling correctly, there didnt seem to be a lot of time to eat and definately not a lot of time to go somewhere to eat either. I live in a fairly large city, with the courts being in the downtown section which is almost always bumper to bumper traffic and limited parking almost everywhere in the downtown section of the city. I mean I have no issues serving, its not like Im trying to use an excuse NOT to, its just going to make for a difficult day keeping MY numbers where they need to be. It takes so little to be out of whack for me and my numbers spike really high, or Im running low. There is no rhyme or reason somedays.
I wish the process was simplier here. Here you just get a questionaire in the mail fill this out and mail it in and then they go from there on whether you are put into a serve or don’t serve. I would much rather speak to someone personally and explain my situtiation. To me face to face communication goes much better than trying to explain something in a letter. That way if whoever does the deciding has questions or requires further clarification you can easily do so.
bsc lol Im jealous too. Sounds like a good experience. I just remember the last time I served it being a crowded room, with several rows of seating in a rather small room. Then just a long wait for them to call your group. You might sit there all day and not be called at all. As far as food I think they did have like donuts and coffee but you were on your own for anything else.
Thank you all so much for your replies. Im glad to know experiences have been positive and accomodations made. I guess we will see how it goes, this is still the very early stages of jury selection so it might not even be a concern. Knowing at least though that it hasnt totally wrecked havoc on several of you and your bs levels puts my mind at ease. Thank you all once again.
My experience is not necessarily what others might experience. In the 1970s, they changed the system, it used to to be that when you were called for jury duty you served 2 months (yes, you read that right). I live in a metropolitin area with lots of people and crimes if intrique. There were more than 100 fellow jurors called to serve. I am also fortunate that the county is wealthy and can afford nice accomodations.
I just planned to sit all day. I brought two books, a bag full of food and a Stieg Larsen book on CD filled with 16 hours of listening. My life is so packed, running around, I guess I actually enjoyed taking a “paid day off.” I was actually rather dissappointed to be dismissed at noon and had to go back to work.
I think if you were to be called for jury service you would have to provide a note from your doctor to either allow you to take your supplies in to court with you, or excuse you all together.
I am off sick permanently so am never going to be called for jury duty, though I think I would like to.
I actually view the “no electronic devices” policy as a challenge that encourages me to do jury duty.
But whenever I show up with my meter pump etc to challenge the policy, I find out that “no electronic devices” really means “no cameras or cellphones”.
I have done jury duty many times as well as being deposed etc. They (be they the court or a room of lawyers) always bend over backwards to let me take breaks to check my bg and snack.
That’s really great to hear everyone has had good experiences. LOl hmmm I wonder if they consider a kindle an electronic device. That is a good idea to bring a couple of books as I am read Stieg Larsen as well. The Girl Who Play With Fire. Haha but of course if I get picked out of all the people who sent they sent the questionaire thing too I will probably be done with that one. But yes taking a kindle would be great if allowed cause you could have such a variety of books with you.
