Why would you want to crossdress for jury duty?
If for fun - not appropriate
If it is the way you normally dress for work or business - appropriate
Why would you want to crossdress for jury duty?
If for fun - not appropriate
If it is the way you normally dress for work or business - appropriate
I've been living enfemme since high school, so that means that when I received a jury summons it was as Karen. I dressed like I did for the office (skirted business suit), took my laptop and got some work done on my novel. I've been summoned several times; been seated twice and dismissed twice (probably because I worked for the government). Never had a problem with documentation - I just showed the jury summons I got in the mail.
That being said, out of three hundred or so people in the jury room, I was one of only two dozen or so that showed respect for the process by 'dressing up' in business wear. The others were variables of 'slob' or 'running around, doing chores' casual.
~Lady K.~
Hi - I actually know a wee small bit about this - if you dress in public only at Halliween, or if you were to show up as an over-the-top Drag Queen in the hope of avoiding jury duty, I'd expect consequences. If you live most of your life as a woman, then a call, letter or visit to the court or court clerk, in advance and dressed business formal to state frankly your concerns and your needs, will get you respect, courtesy and a seat in the prospective jury panel. Let them see you are serious, and you will get the respect you deserve; give them the idea you're mocking the Ststem, they'll try to teach you a lesson.
I think that most of the summons state dress appropriate or some such words depending on the state. So unless you are transitioning dress male. I've been summoned a few times, but will never get picked. Some trials are interesting.
Most of the judges I know are not that tolerant.
I would not chance it. But you could go under dressed
If you get a particularly irritable judge, you may find yourself on the wrong end of a charge of contempt. Not worth the risk, IMO.
I too have been getting jury summons but every time it gets canceled or pleaded out. (no actual trials) Maybe one day after I am too old to participate, I'll finally get to see the inside of a jury room.
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. Mark Twain
Luckily I do not come close to passing and I would not do it myself for a couple reasons. One, I would be a distraction, two my brother in law is a criminal defense attorney and I know the crap they pull, and three, I no longer trust the police or judges. Given the current corrupt climate of American jurisprudence, I doubt I will ever serve on a jury.
In San Mateo or Snata Clara COunty ( guessing based on where you live based on your profile), you won't be held in contempt. Judges in either county are sufficiently familiar with crossdressing, transsexuals, and transgender behavior that, while they find your attire unusual, they will treat you professionally and with dignity. You probably won't get picked as a juror, though. Notwithstanding the one member who was selected as a juror (and served as foreperson), most civil defense attorneys will reject you because they want predictable, preferably conservative jurors and you just won't give that vibe if you're dressed. And most prosecutors want followers, not those who are willing to stand apart, as jurors, and dressing obviously proves you're not that.
I've never been called for jury duty (we have far fewer jury trials in Australia than the US due to our legal system).
My opinion would be would I be showing disrespect or distracting the court from dealing with the matter at hand? Jury duty is not a "fun day out" and you should respect this is a crucial part of our democratic system that deserves respect.
Here's how I would do it. Just wear nice casual women's clothes. Like a pair of slacks a sweater and not to conspicuous shoes.A nice clean shave and lotion up. Of course full under dress. I dress like this all the time in public. even to church. I know I've stated in many threads that I don't go out en fem anymore, but I guess I do. The main thing is don't dress to stand out in the crowd. Dress respectable and comfortable. Daviolin
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A CD AND HIS WARDROBE, ITS A BEAUTIFUL THING.
If you are charged with contempt simply for dressing in women's clothing, the ACLU will be all over it and you will be able to sue the city (state, county) for millions of dollars. I don't believe that a judge would risk it.Originally Posted by giuseppina
You will become stronger in the ways of the Pink Fog. May the Pink Fog guide you and be with you now and forever.
I would only go dressed if I could be completely relaxed while doing so. There are certain situations where I can be relaxed, but jury duty is a stressful situation to begin with (after all, I am being hauled into court for an indefinite time against my will) and my preference would be to keep things simple.
Eryn
"These girls have the most beautiful dresses. And so do I! How about that!" [Kaylee, in Firefly] [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
"What do you care what other people think?" [Arlene Feynman, to her husband Richard]
"She's taller than all the women in my family, combined!" [Howard, in The Big Bang Theory]
"Tall, tall girl. The woman could hunt geese with a rake!" [Mary Cooper, in The Big Bang Theory]
I disagree with this. Contempt is pretty much at the judge's discretion. At best, you would get compensated for your time if they held you in jail or you could beat the fine. But if the court argued you were attempting to deceive the court, I think it could stand.
Sorry Jamie but if the judge thinks your being disrespectful no matter how you dress you will be facing contempt charges. Then you have to try and argue the point later. I would not be hopeful of a good outcome even with the best laywers. The ACLU wont fight a case unless that have a reasonable chance of winning.
In Washington State the law offers protection from discrimination for gays, lesbians, transsexuals and transgendered persons. It would be against the law to throw someone out of the jury pool because she or he is one of these protected citizens. If one is transgendered then I would recommend appearing in respectful business attire. I've sat on juries and I've always encountered jury members who take their citizen duty seriously.
I suspect the appearance of a transgendered person in the pool of prospective jurors would give the attorney's something else to consider in the selection of the jurors.
No I haven't. Don't think I would have the nerve to. But I never know.
Life is too short to worry about what others think about you!!!!!!!
I posed this question a while back when I also got summoned for jury duty (I guess great minds think alike lol) I was very tempted to go dressed as I now live in a different city than the one I was supposed to go to. I chickened out and ended up just under dressing like usual.
I apologize for the sideways profile pic
It would be more interesting if some would contact their local courthouses and ask for the official policy. Who knows, it might be on their websites.
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