North Carolina · statute · N.C. Gen. Stat. ch. 9 · 24 active provisions
Jury commission in each county; membership; selection; oath; terms; expenses of jury system. Not later than July 1, 1967, there shall be appointed in each county a jury commission of three members. One member of the commission shall be appointed by the senior regular resident superior court judge, one member by the cle…
Preparation of master jury list; sources of names. (a) It shall be the duty of the jury commission during every odd-numbered year to prepare a master list of prospective jurors qualified under this Chapter to serve in the biennium beginning on January 1 of the next year. Instead of providing a master list for an entire…
Qualifications of prospective jurors. (a) A person is qualified to serve as a juror and shall be included on the master jury list if the person meets all of the following: (1) Is a citizen of the United States. (2) Is a resident of the State. (3) Is a resident of the county. (4) Has not served as a juror during the pre…
Preparation and custody of alphabetized list; access to list. (a) As the master jury list is prepared, the name of each qualified person selected for the list shall be recorded and alphabetically arranged. The alphabetized list shall be maintained in the office of the clerk of court, together with a statement of the so…
Procedure for drawing panel of jurors. At least 30 days prior to any session or sessions of superior or district court requiring a jury, the clerk of superior court or assistant or deputy clerk shall prepare or have electronically prepared a randomized list of names from the master jury list equal to the number of juro…
Jury service a public duty; excuses to be allowed in exceptional cases; procedure. (a) The General Assembly hereby declares the public policy of this State to be that jury service is the solemn obligation of all qualified citizens, and that excuses from the discharge of this responsibility should be granted only for re…
Requests to be excused. (a) Any person summoned as a juror who is a full-time student and who wishes to be excused pursuant to G.S. 9-6(b1) or who is 72 years or older and who wishes to be excused, deferred, or exempted, may make the request without appearing in person by filing a signed statement of the grounds for th…
Reports of excusals from jury duty based on disqualification. (a) The name and address provided by each person who requests to be excused from jury duty on the basis that the person is not qualified to serve as a juror, along with the reason for that request, shall be retained by the clerk of superior court for the rem…
Notation on master jury list of names of jurors who have served; retention. (a) The names of persons summoned for jury service and the date or dates on which each person served shall be noted on the master jury list. This information shall be retained for two years, and persons shall be exempt from jury service for a p…
Judicial support staff may assist clerk with performance of duties. (a) Upon the request of the clerk of superior court and with the agreement of the clerk of superior court and the senior resident superior court judge, the duties and responsibilities of the clerk of superior court under this Article may be assigned to…
Summons to jurors. (a) The clerk of court shall serve the summons by first-class mail, or shall deliver either printed summonses or the list of the panel of prospective jurors to the sheriff of the county, who shall summon the persons named therein. The summons shall be served personally, or by leaving a copy thereof a…
Supplemental jurors; special venire. (a) If necessary, the court may, without using the jury list, order the sheriff to summon from day to day additional jurors to supplement the original venire. Jurors so summoned shall have the same qualifications and be subject to the same challenges as jurors selected for the regul…
Supplemental jurors from other counties. (a) On motion of any party or the State, or on his own motion, any judge of the superior court, if he is of the opinion that it is necessary in order to provide a fair trial in any case, and regardless of whether he will preside over the trial of that case, may order as many jur…
Penalty for disobeying summons. Every person summoned to appear as a juror who has not been excused, and who fails to appear and attend until duly discharged, shall be subject to a fine of not more than fifty dollars ($50.00), to be imposed by the court, unless he renders an excuse deemed sufficient. The forfeiture so…
Jury sworn; judge decides competency. The clerk shall, at the beginning of court, swear all jurors who have not been selected as grand jurors. Each juror shall take (i) the oath required by Section 7 of Article VI of the Constitution of North Carolina, by swearing or affirming to support and maintain the Constitution o…
Questioning jurors without challenge; challenges for cause. (a) The court, and any party to an action, or his counsel of record shall be allowed, in selecting the jury, to make direct oral inquiry of any prospective juror as to the fitness and competency of any person to serve as a juror, without having such inquiry tr…
Exemption from civil arrest. No sheriff or other officer shall arrest under civil process any juror during his attendance at or going to and returning from any session of the superior or district court. Any such arrest shall be invalid, and the defendant on motion shall be discharged. (1779, c. 157, s. 10, P.R.; R.C.,…
Jurors impaneled to try case furnished with accommodations; separation of jurors. A jury, impaneled to try any cause, shall be put in charge of an officer of the court and shall be furnished with such accommodations as the court may order, and the accommodations shall be paid for by the parties or by the State, as orde…
Alternate jurors. (a) Civil Cases. Whenever the presiding judge deems it appropriate, one or more alternate jurors may be selected in the same manner as the regular trial panel of jurors in the case. Each party shall be entitled to two peremptory challenges as to each such alternate juror, in addition to any unexpended…
Peremptory challenges in civil cases. The clerk, before a jury is impaneled to try the issues in any civil suit, shall read over the names of the prospective jurors in the presence and hearing of the parties or their counsel; and the parties, or their counsel for them, may challenge peremptorily eight jurors without sh…
Civil cases having several plaintiffs or several defendants; challenges apportioned; discretion of judge. (a) When there are two or more defendants in a civil action, the presiding judge, if it appears that there are antagonistic interests between the defendants, may in the judge's discretion apportion among the defend…
Peremptory challenges in criminal cases governed by Chapter 15A. Peremptory challenges in criminal cases are governed by Article 72, Selecting and Impaneling the Jury, of Chapter 15A of the General Statutes. (22 Hen. VIII, c. 14, s. 6; 33 Edw. I, c. 4; 1777, c. 115, s. 85, P.R.; 1801, c. 592, s. 1, P.R.; 1812, c. 833,…
Discharge of juror unlawful. (a) No employer may discharge or demote any employee because the employee has been called for jury duty, or is serving as a grand juror or petit juror. (b) Any employer who violates any provision of this section shall be liable in a civil action for reasonable damages suffered by an employe…
Training and educational material provided to jurors. The Administrative Office of the Courts shall prescribe rules governing any training or educational material provided at any time to any jurors, including jurors under this Chapter and grand jurors under Chapter 15A of the General Statutes, to try any cause. The cou…