Voters and drivers beware: The jury commissioner has your names and is not afraid to call on them.

In Iowa, jury members are selected randomly by voter or license registrations. Any Iowa resident who is at least 18, who is a United States citizen, and who holds a motor vehicle license or is registered to vote can be picked for jury duty.

Iowa annually updates its source list containing the names of qualified potential jurors.

According to the Iowa Judicial Branch, after jurors are chosen for a term of duty, names are placed in a pool. Depending on the case, six to 12 people are randomly chosen and are questioned by the attorneys.

The questioning process is called Voir Dire, and is used to determine each juror’s ability to evaluate the case fairly.

“The traditional method of Voir Dire is to ask jurors about their family and work background, try to find out their political and social attitudes and values,” said Kevin Kirlin, an attorney in Des Moines.

Kirlin said there is no one method to select a jury.

“There are many different theories on how to figure out what the values of prejudices of jury panel members are,” he said.

“I have come to the point of view that all a lawyer has a right to ask of jurors is that they be fair and base their decision on the facts rather than on their prejudices.”

Kirlin said he is a strong believer in juries.

“I think they reflect the collective intelligence of the community,” he said. “I would rather trust my fate and that of my client to a jury of ordinary people rather than to a group of lawyers.”

There are many legal reasons for a juror to be excused from a particular case, such as being acquainted with the plaintiff, Kirlin said. Sometimes, jurors may be excused without even knowing the reason.

Iowa law considers those who fail to report for duty in contempt of court, a charge for which fines can be issued and jail time may be served.

There are some circumstances when a person can be excused from service. According to the Iowa Judicial Branch, the court may excuse people upon finding evidence of hardship, inconvenience or public necessity.

For each juror dismissed from the panel, a new one is added from the jury pool until a complete panel exists. Alternative jurors also are picked in case any jurors may need to be dismissed later in the trial, he said.

According to the Iowa Judicial Branch, a new jury management system allows courts to reduce the length of juror service. With this procedure, courts can release jurors who report for service if they are not selected for a panel after one day. Jurors who are selected are required to serve only one trial.

Jamie Bachtell, graduate student in journalism and mass communication, served on a jury for a federal trial. He is serving a six-month term, which will expire in March.

Bachtell said jury duty often can cause people to make postponements and sacrifices to rearrange their schedules, although he has not had any problems.

“It worked out really well, I didn’t miss any classes in fact,” he said.

Lea Henderson, secretary in Human Resource Services at Iowa State, has served on a federal and a county case.

Henderson said she had to miss work for about three days when she served duty.

“I also had two small children and had to be sure my baby sitter was willing to keep them late,” she said.

Henderson said her first time on a jury was “an interesting situation” because she worked for an insurance company at the time, and that particular case happened to deal with insurance issues. When she was chosen for duty she was given time to call her employer.

“My manager did not believe that I was selected for the jury, because of the nature of the case and considering my job,” she said.

Henderson said the judge had to speak with her employer to verify that she was indeed chosen for that trial.

According to Iowa law, an employer cannot threaten or terminate a person who is serving or who is being called to serve as a juror.

Jurors also are paid for the time they spend on duty.

Jurors serving in an Iowa county court are paid $10 a day. They are also entitled to reimbursement for mileage and parking fees. Some employers continue to pay their employees while serving jury duty, but they are not required to do so.

Bachtell said he had a positive experience as a juror.

“It was fascinating to be a part of it and to see how it worked, and to be a part of a real armed robbery case,” he said.