Wahkiakum jury service: new summons web portal available for jurors

Wahkiakum County Superior Court has announced the implementation of a new web-based jury system program that will allow jurors the opportunity to complete their juror summons questionnaire online through the Wahkiakum Online Juror Portal when summoned for jury duty.

Juror Summons forms will now provide information on how to go online and complete the required qualification/questionnaire through the Wahkiakum Online Juror Portal or jurors may still complete the mailed summons and return them to the Wahkiakum Clerk’s Office by mail or in person.

The new online juror portal will also allow the court to send jurors correspondence and notices via email or text message should you elect to register for that feature. Lastly, summoned jurors asking for excusal or postponement will be able to upload supporting documents directly through the online juror portal. Jurors will be eligible to log onto the Juror Portal and register for these features the next time they are summoned to jury service.

Many may be asking, “I was just summoned as a juror, why am I being summoned again so soon?” Due to the small size of our county (juror pool of less than 3,500 individuals), Wahkiakum is mandated to summon jurors to a service term of one month per RCW 2.36.010(11). This requirement to summon monthly increases the likelihood of being randomly selected to serve and it is very common for a juror to receive a summons more than once in any given year.

When you are randomly selected to serve and receive a jury summons in the mail, your month-long term of service will be as an on-call juror. As an on-call juror, you are not required to check in daily, but rather, if a jury trial is confirmed to proceed during your month of service and you are randomly selected from the pool of eligible jurors to report for juror selection, a letter will be mailed approximately one week prior to the scheduled trial date that informs you of the date and time you are required to appear at the Wahkiakum Courthouse for jury selection.

Scheduled jury trial dates for the current month can be found be calling the Juror Hotline at 866-570-7276 or by visiting the Wahkiakum County Official Jury Duty Website: https://www.co.wahkiakum.wa.us/394/Jury-Duty.