Jurors in Short Supply as Courts Resume Trials Amid Pandemic

State courts attempting to resume jury trials have plenty of plexiglass, hand sanitizer, and masks. Finding enough jurors is another matter.

“Nobody wants to serve,” said Lorna Alksne, the presiding judge for the Superior Court in San Diego, which has had an unusually low 5% yield on jury summonses in advance of its first trial this month since last fall.

Potential jurors already worried about missing work may now also fear for their safety in courthouses or while commuting there due to health risks posed by the pandemic, said Jeremy Fogel, a former federal judge and an executive director of ...