Disability and Age in Jury Service Nondiscrimination Act
This bill, the Disability and Age in Jury Service Nondiscrimination Act, would change federal law to prohibit excluding individuals from serving on federal grand or petit juries because of disability or age. It would insert disability and age as protected categories in the jury-service nondiscrimination provision and tighten the standard for disability-based disqualification. Specifically, it would replace the term “infirmity” with “disability that cannot be reasonably accommodated” and add a new provision stating that a person cannot be disqualified from jury service on account of disability if they could meet the relevant qualifications with reasonable accommodation. In short, the bill aims to broaden the pool of potential jurors by ensuring that disability (and age) are not automatic disqualifications so long as reasonable accommodations can enable participation.
Key Points
- 1Adds "disability, age" as protected categories for exclusion from federal jury service, alongside existing nondiscrimination protections.
- 2Replaces the term “infirmity” in the jury-qualification standard with “disability that cannot be reasonably accommodated,” creating an explicit accommodation-based test for eligibility.
- 3Establishes a new provision: no person may be disqualified from serving on grand or petit juries due to disability if they could meet the qualification criteria with reasonable accommodation.
- 4Applies to federal grand and petit juries in district courts, expanding access to a more inclusive pool of jurors.
- 5Relies on the concept of “reasonable accommodation,” implying courts must assess whether accommodations can enable a qualified individual to serve.