HB0022 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 01247 LCB 31247 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB0022

Introduced 12/3/2004, by Rep. Paul D. Froehlich

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

705 ILCS 305/10.2	from Ch. 78, par. 10.2
705 ILCS 305/10.3 new

Amends the Jury Act. Provides that a juror personal history form and a juror profile form are confidential and are not public records. Provides that in no event shall any answer contained on a personal history or profile form be publicly disclosed by the court, any officer of the court, or any party authorized to have access to the form. Lists the persons who are entitled to examine a juror personal history or a juror profile form.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning civil law.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Jury Act is amended by changing Section 10.2 and by adding Section 10.3 as follows:

(705 ILCS 305/10.2) (from Ch. 78, par. 10.2)

Sec. 10.2. Excusing prospective jurors; hardship.

(a) The county boards of the respective counties, the jury commissioners for those counties which have been appointed under the Jury Commission Act, or a jury administrator shall submit confidential questionnaires to prospective jurors to inquire as to their qualifications for jury service and as to the hardship that jury service would pose to the prospective jurors. Upon prior approval by the chief judge of the judicial circuits in which a county board, jury administrator, or jury commissioners are situated, the county board, jury administrator, or jury commissioners shall excuse a prospective juror from jury service if the prospective juror shows that such service would impose an undue hardship on account of the nature of the prospective juror's occupation, business affairs, physical health, family situation, active duty in the Illinois National Guard or Illinois Naval Militia, or other personal affairs, and cause his or her name to be returned to the jury list or general jury list.

(b) When an undue hardship caused by a family situation is due to the prospective juror being the primary care giver of a person with a mental or physical disability, a person with a medically diagnosed behavior problem, or a child under age 12, then the county board, jury commissioners or jury administrator shall excuse such a prospective juror, if it finds that no reasonable alternative care is feasible which would not impose an undue hardship on the prospective juror or the person for whom the prospective juror is providing care, or both.

(Source: P.A. 90-482, eff. 1-1-98; 91-264, eff. 7-23-99.)

(705 ILCS 305/10.3 new)

Sec. 10.3. Confidentiality of juror history. A juror personal history form and a juror profile form are confidential and are not public records. In no event shall any answer contained on a personal history or profile form be publicly disclosed by the court, any officer of the court, or any party authorized to have access to the form. Those persons entitled to examine a juror personal history or a juror profile form shall include:

(1) the jury commission;

(2) the judge;

(3) the clerk of the court;

(4) the parties to a trial and their attorney, during the jury selection process, but only including information concerning jurors on the panel for that case; and

(5) those persons authorized access by court order.

Parties to a case and their attorneys may only examine the forms after the conclusion of jury selection by an order of the court in which the case is pending.