General Information
Dutchess County Commissioner of Jurors
228 Main St.
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
(845) 486-2685
We are a New York State agency under the jurisdiction of the Unified Court Administration. Pursuant to State law, Dutchess County is responsible for our facilities.
The Commissioner of Jurors is appointed for a four-year term by the County Jury Board, which consists of a Supreme Court Justice, the senior County Court Judge, and a member of the County Legislature who is not an attorney. Our other employees are appointed pursuant to civil service guidelines.
We maintain a Central Jury Pool from which we provide jurors to the State Supreme Courts, the County Surrogate Court, the County Criminal Courts, and the City Courts. Service in these courts excludes you from further service for at least four years (eight years if you report more than ten days). Also, we draw panels from our pool of qualified jurors for the Town and Village Courts, where service excludes you for at least two years.
If you have a disability and are in need of an accommodation, then call our office upon receipt of your summons (845-486-2685, or 1-800-662-1220 for a relay call).
In case of inclement weather, call the recorded message at 845-486-2692 after 8:00am for updated instructions.
EXCUSES - You may request to be excused from jury service because of extreme inconvenience or hardship, such as a serious medical condition or the daily care of a family member in need of supervision. Ordinarily, excuses are not permanent, and there are no exemptions from jury service. Matters of conscience are determined in the courtroom by the Judge and the Attorneys, and students may be postponed to when school is not in session. Information about postponements is on the "Petit Jury" and the "Grand Jury" pages, and on your summons.
Pursuant to Section 521 of the Judiciary Law, jurors are entitled to a $40.00 PER DIEM unless they receive payment from their employer. Employers with more than ten employees MUST pay their employees the first $40.00 of their daily wages during the first THREE days of their jury attendance; thereafter, employees whose wages are withheld will be paid a $40.00 per diem by the State. There is no reimbursement for transportation or parking.
JUDICIARY LAW, Article 16, Section 519 - "RIGHT OF JUROR TO BE ABSENT FROM EMPLOYMENT. Any person who is summoned to serve as a juror under the provisions of this article and who notifies his or her employer to that effect prior to the commencement of a term of service shall not, on account of absence from employment by reason of such jury service, be subject to discharge or penalty. An employer may, however, withhold wages of any such employee serving as a juror during the period of such service; provided that an employer who employs more than ten employees shall not withhold the first forty dollars of such juror’s daily wages during the first three days of jury service. Withholding of wages in accordance with this section shall not be deemed a penalty. Violation of this section shall constitute a criminal contempt of court punishable pursuant to section seven hundred fifty of this chapter."