Summons Information
Summoned jurors should always reference the Jury Message Line as instructed on their summons at (231) 689-7318 for guidance on whether they are required to report and what is expected.
Jurors summoned for jury service will be asked to wear masks during the jury selection process as they will be seated in close proximity to one another. The Court has N95 masks for extra protection for jurors upon request. Appearing jurors will undergo a brief health screening during juror check-in. Please do not forget to bring your driver’s license or a picture ID!
Jury Information
The Newaygo County Circuit Court conducts various criminal, civil, abuse/neglect, and juvenile jury trials for which jurors are needed from the community to decide each case based on the law. Jury duty is a civic duty, and the Circuit Court appreciates the citizens who participate. Please read below for more information regarding jury duty and if you have further questions, please email newaygocircuitcourt@newaygocountymi.gov or call (231) 689-7252.
Jurors are randomly placed in panels of 20 jurors by the Jury Board and those names are given to the Circuit Court to be summoned as need arises for jury trials throughout the year. The jury board is a separate entity responsible for requesting a list of potential jurors from the Secretary of State each year. The jury board also mails juror questionnaires for potential jurors and questionnaire information is later used to provide a list of jurors to the courts. If you have questions for the jury board about your juror questionnaire, please contact Michelle Kuikstra at 231-689-7286. Michelle can also be reached at mkuikstra@newaygocountymi.gov.
Jury service is broken down into four different quarters, or terms (JAN-MAR, APR-JUN, JUL-SEP, and OCT-DEC). All jurors for a given term will receive an introductory letter indicating expectations for their service term. Following that introduction, jurors will receive individual summons as needed for that jury term. After receiving your introductory letter, please contact the court immediately at the email or number above if your address has changed. Those appearing after being summoned will be checked in and will go through a jury selection process. If a juror is summoned and fails to appear for jury service a show cause may be scheduled for the juror where the failure to appear as summoned would need to be explained to the judge.
Please see the list of frequently asked questions regarding jury duty below. If you do not see your situation below, please contact the Circuit Court at newaygocircuitcourt@newaygocountymi.gov for assistance.
Also, please check out this video from the Michigan Judicial Institute on the role of a juror:
Jury Service FAQ’s
You may contact the Circuit Court to request that you would no longer like to serve and that you are over 70 years of age. The Circuit Court will require a copy of your driver’s license or Michigan ID and then may permanently excuse you from jury duty. If you would still like to serve you may certainly do so.
You or your physician may send, fax, or email a letter to the Circuit Court written by your physician indicating that you would not be able to participate in jury service for a medical reason. If you are seeking to be permanently excused from jury service for this medical reason the letter from your physician must state that. If it does not then you may be excused for the jury term based on the letter and not permanently excused.
Jurors may request to be excused from jury service for no more than ten business days during the jury term. No special form is needed. Simply put your request in writing and fax, send, or email it to the Circuit Court. You will receive confirmation via mail or email that your dates have been excused for your records if the time requested off does not exceed 10 business days.
You may request a one-time transfer to another jury term if you have plans during the term for which you have been selected. You may make a request in writing to be transferred to another term. This request may be sent, faxed, or emailed to the Circuit Court for processing. The juror will receive a letter or email confirming the transfer. The month prior to the new term starting the juror will receive another letter stating that they have been selected for jury service for the new term that they have chosen.
You will receive a summons in the mail providing you with information on when and where you are required to appear for jury service. That summons will tell you to call the Jury Message Line to listen to a recorded message after a certain time. Please do not call the Jury Message Line earlier than indicated on your summons as it may not have the most updated information. Also, please refer to the Summons Information at the top of this page for details about current panels summoned and the need to appear.
If you are no longer a Newaygo County resident you will need to present a copy of your updated license or state identification card showing your new address. This can be mailed, faxed, or emailed to the Circuit Court. Upon receipt the Circuit Court will remove you from the jury list if you reside out of the county.
If you have moved to a different residence within the county, please contact the Circuit Court to update the address so that you receive summons and other jury information in a timely fashion.
Attention will still be given to providing additional protection from the spread of COVID-19 during the trial and jury selection processes. Please review your jury summons for further direction and information.
