Serving on a jury is a defining expression of United States citizenship and, for many, the most significant opportunity—outside of voting—to share in the responsibilities of democratic self-government. Under current state law, however, individuals convicted of crimes punishable by more than one year of imprisonment are forever disqualified from serving as jurors unless they have received a pardon or amnesty. This rule unfairly excludes nearly all individuals with any prior conviction from jury service.

The Commonwealth is one of only a handful of states that places this permanent civil disability on individuals with past felony and some past misdemeanor convictions, and we continue to block this community of diverse and knowledgeable citizens from performing their civic duty despite the lack of empirical evidence that they are not qualified. 

My legislation aims to lift this civil disability by allowing people with prior convictions to serve as jurors, while still prohibiting individuals currently serving a sentence of incarceration or court-ordered supervision from the same. This would not only improve the legitimacy and fairness of our justice system, but also promote societal acceptance, build self-esteem, and foster greater community engagement for individuals in this Commonwealth with prior convictions.

Juries are crucial to ensuring fair trials, upholding democracy, and fostering fairness and accountability. By continuing to prohibit individuals with prior convictions from participating in this civic duty, we do a disservice not only to this group of individuals, but our communities as a whole. Addressing this barrier will help ensure that our juries are more representative of the communities they serve and that our democracy is stronger, fairer, and more inclusive. Please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation to improve our justice system and the judicial process.