The following prospective jurors are exempt from jury service if employed on a paid full-time basis in one of the following categories. This means they will not need to serve on a jury.

• Members in active service in the Armed Forces of the United States;
• Members of the fire or police departments of any state, district, territory, possession, or subdivision; and
• Public officers in the executive, legislative, or judicial branches of any federal, state, or local government who are actively engaged in the performance of official duties. A public officer is either elected to public office or directly appointed by a person elected to public office.

The following prospective jurors may request to be excused from jury service. The court may or may not grant the excuse, or may require the juror to report during a different month.

• Persons over 70 years of age;
• Persons who have, within the past two years, served on a grand or petit jury in any court;
• Volunteer safety personnel who serve without compensation as firefighters or members of a rescue squad or ambulance crew for a public agency;
• Persons having active care and custody of a child or children under ten years of age whose health and/or safety would be jeopardized by their absence for jury service;
• Persons who are essential to the care of aged or infirm persons;
• Persons whose services are essential to the operation of a business, commercial, or agricultural enterprise such that the enterprise could not function if the person were required to perform jury duty; or
• Persons for whom jury service is a temporary hardship or extreme inconvenience.

If serving during the month you are called would cause you undue hardship or extreme inconvenience, you can request to serve during a different month. Explain the reasons for your request on the juror qualification questionnaire. If you have already submitted your questionnaire, your request must be made in writing and submitted either by accessing eJuror online or by email, fax, or U.S. Mail. The court will consider each request on a case-by-case basis. Requests must be submitted in writing by the individual summoned (not your employer). Do not assume your request has been approved until you receive confirmation from the court. If your request is submitted by email, the court will respond to your email during business hours.

The court will contact you with advance notice of upcoming trials and last-minute changes. Automated calls, texts, and emails are frequently used to communicate jury information during your jury service.

Submit the juror qualification questionnaire on that person's behalf. In the designated area, indicate 1) the nature of the person's disability or the date of his or her death (no death certificate required), and 2) your name and relationship to the individual.

The court requires persons convicted of felonies to provide clear documentation showing their right to serve on a jury has been restored under applicable law before jury service is allowed. If you do not know if your right to serve on a jury has been restored or you cannot provide proof to the court’s satisfaction, the court will find you ineligible for jury service. Provide the requested information to the best of your ability.

Restoration of civil rights, including the right to serve as a juror, is governed by the law of the convicting jurisdiction. Jurisdictions vary on whether conviction results in the loss of any civil rights and, if applicable, how those civil rights are restored. In some jurisdictions, restoration of rights may occur automatically upon completion of sentence, while in other jurisdictions, an affirmative act, such as a pardon, must occur. The district probation office or the office of the attorney general of the state where you were convicted may assist you.

For felony convictions in Nebraska, Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-112 states, “Any person sentenced to be punished for any felony, when the sentence is not reversed or annulled, is incompetent to be a juror or to hold any office of honor, trust, or profit within this state, unless such person receives from the Board of Pardons of this state a warrant of discharge, in which case such person shall be restored to such civil rights and privileges as enumerated or limited by the Board of Pardons. The warrant of discharge shall not release such person from the costs of conviction unless otherwise ordered by the Board of Pardons.”

Regarding federal felony convictions, rights may be restored through a presidential pardon or if the federal court of conviction restores the individual’s rights. For example, a federal statute may allow a conviction to be set aside.

You must be employed on a paid full-time basis. This exemption applies to persons working, not volunteering, in this capacity at the state and local, not federal, level. Police are those charged with day-to-day maintenance of order throughout the community who have arresting authority. Individuals who are determined to be in this category may not serve even if they indicate a desire to do so.

Individuals summoned by the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska who are 70 years old or over may request to be excused in the Requesting an Excuse section on the juror qualification questionnaire.

You will be paid roundtrip mileage at the current rate from your home address to the court’s address. You are responsible for providing your own transportation to the courthouse. If you have a valid driver’s license, the court does not excuse jurors who are unfamiliar with the court location or don’t drive in the city. If you cannot drive yourself, you should arrange to have someone drive you or take public transportation, if available in your area. If you have someone drive you, he/she is welcome to wait in the jury assembly room while you are in the courtroom.

If transportation is a financial hardship, please explain why reimbursement of your mileage would not relieve that hardship. Also explain if your transportation hardship is temporary or permanent.

If you need to use public transportation to travel to and from the court, i.e., bus, you may be paid the actual reasonable expense of such public transportation when the full cost is not met by the roundtrip mileage reimbursement. Public transportation does not include a taxi or ridesharing service (Uber, Lyft). In an emergency, the Clerk of Court may authorize the use of a taxi or ridesharing service. If public transportation, a taxi, or a ridesharing service must be used, the Clerk of Court must approve these expenses. If you are scheduled to report for jury duty, please contact the jury clerk beforehand to notify the court that public transportation expenses are necessary.

A supplemental questionnaire is an additional questionnaire that asks jurors to answer in advance questions often asked during jury selection. This questionnaire shortens the time needed for jury selection, so it saves jurors' time and taxpayers' money.