MINUTES OF THE JUDICIAL COUNCIL
OF THE TENTH CIRCUIT
August 17, 2009
On this date, the Judicial Council approved the request of the District of
Wyoming, as submitted by Chief District Judge William F. Downes on July 30,
2009, to amend Sections 3(a), 3(b), 3(c), 3(d), 4(c), 5(b), 7(d), 8(b), and 11 of its
jury plan. The amended plan may be made effective at a date of the court's
choosing, upon approval of the court's chief judge or his designee. See 28 U.S.C.
§ 1863(a). A copy of the final published plan should be sent to the Circuit
Executive.
By:---~
Victoria M. Parks
Deputy Circuit Executive
for David Tighe
Circuit Executive and Secretary to the
Judicial Council of the Tenth Circuit
United States Courts for the Tenth Circuit
Office of the Circuit Executive
1823 Stout Street
Denver, Colorado 80257
(303) 844--2067
David Tighe Victoria M. Parks
Circuit Executive Deputy Circuit Executive
(303) 335-2829 (303) 335-2630
August 18, 2009
Honorable William F. Downes
Chief U.S. District Judge
111 Wolcott, Suite 210
Casper, WY 82601
Re: Approval of Changes to Jury Plan
Dear Chief Judge Downes:
Attached is a copy ofthe Judicial Council's order approving changes to the Jury Plan
for the District of Wyoming. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Sin~
Victoria M. ~tks
Deputy Circlit Executive
VMP:kwl
Enc!.
cc: Stephan Harris, Clerk
Maggie Botkins, Chief Deputy Clerk
FILED
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT U.S. DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF WYOMING
FOR THE DISTRICT OF WYOMING JUL 3 0 2009
AMENDED DISTRICT PLAN FOR RANDOM Stephan Harris, Clerk
Cheyenne
SELECTION OF GRAND AND PETIT JURORS
Pursuant to the General Order of this Court dated, July 30, 2009 the Court hereby amends
its Jury Selection Plan.
NOW, THEREFORE, The District Plan for the Random Selection of Grand and Petit
Jurors shall read as follows:
1. DISCRIMINATION PROHIBITED.
No citizen shall be excluded from service as a grand or petit juror on account of race,
color, religion, sex, national origin, or economic status.
2. APPLICABILITY OF PLAN
This Plan is applicable to the selection and service of both the grand and petit jurors in
the United States District Court for the District of Wyoming.
3. PLACES FOR HOLDING COURT AND DESIGNATION OF DIVISIONS
(a) Divisions Within District. To ensure impartial trials and at the same time avoid
incurring unnecessary expense and unduly burdening citizens of any part of the
District with jury service, the District of Wyoming is hereby divided into four
divisions for jury selection purposes; namely, Cheyenne Division, Casper
Division, Jackson Division and Fremont County Division.
(b) Fremont County. The Wind River Indian Reservation is located in Fremont
County, Wyoming. As a result, Fremont County has a high concentration of
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Native American population l . Fremont County is designated as a fourth division
within the District of Wyoming. The presiding Judge may direct that names from
Fremont County Division be included in a division or a combination of divisions
within the District for petit jury selection.
(c) CombininK Divisions. The Presiding Judge may direct that names of petit jurors
be drawn randomly from all divisions, a select divison and/or a combination of
divisions within the District. A minimum of forty-five (45) days prior to jury
selection shall be given to ensure that the proper percentage of each division is
properly reconstituted within the division for petit jury selection.
(d) Counties within Divisions. The following counties from which jurors will be
drawn for each division or place of holding court are hereby designated:
Divisions and Cities Counties from Which
Where Court is Held: Jurors are Drawn:
Cheyenne Goshen
Platte
Laramie
Albany
Carbon
Sweetwater
Jaekson Uinta
Lincoln
Sublette
Teton
Casper Sheridan
Johnson
Campbell
Crook
IThe 2000 Census reported 28.9% of Fremont County's population is Native American
(6,728).
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Weston
Niobrara
Converse
Natrona
Park
Hot Springs
BigHorn
Washakie
Fremont Fremont
4. CLERK. OF COURT
(a) Authority of Clerk of Court. Pursuant to 28. U.S.C. 1863(b)(l), the Clerk of
Court is hereby authorized to manage the jury selection process. The Clerk shall
act under the supervision and control of the Chief Judge of this Court or any other
active or senior active judge as the Chief Judge may designate. (Section 1863
(b)(l».
(b). Authorization of Clerk to Grant Excuses. For purposes of the selection ofpersons
for jury service on grand and petit panels, the Clerk of Court or the Chief Deputy
is hereby authorized to grant said jurors temporary excuses from service on the
grounds of "undue hardship or extreme inconvenience." The names of all jurors
granted temporary excuses by the Court or the Clerk of Court shall be reinstated
back into the qualified wheel.
(c). Permanent Excuses. For purposes of the selection of persons for jury service on
grand and petit panels, any District Judge and the Clerk ofCourt is hereby authorized
to grant said jurors permanent excuses from service on the grounds of "undue
hardship or extreme inconvenience."
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5. RANDOM SELECTION
(a) Voter Rea:istration List. Names of prospective jurors to serve on grand and petit
jurors drawn for service commencing after the effective date of the Plan shall be
selected at random from the voter registration lists of every county in Wyoming as
designated in this Order, and placed in the Master Jury Wheel. This Court finds that
the voter lists prepared by the State of Wyoming represent a fair cross section ofthe
persons residing in said counties. The Clerk of Court shall make the random
selection of not less than one thousand (1,000) names from said voter registration
lists in each division.
(b) Selection of Names. The Clerk shall ensure that the number of registered voters
selected from each county's list for the master jury wheel reflects the same proportion
that each county's registered voters comprise of registered voters of all counties in
the District. For example, if the registered voters in a particular county reflect 5%
of all the state's registered voters, then the Clerk shall ensure that the total number
of names selected from that county's list of registered voters is equal to 5% of the
total number of names so selected from the lists ofall counties in the Distriet~ The
Clerk then will ensure that the Court's automated selection system randomly selects
the appropriate number of names of registered voters from each county's list. The
Clerk shall ensure that the system, in randomly selecting the appropriate number of
names for the master jury wheel is programmed to cycle completely through each
county's voter registration list at least once to ensure that each name on the list,
regardless of its position relative to the other names on the list, has an equivalent
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probability of being selected.
In each of the following divisions, the following number ofnames shall be drawn from the voters'
registration lists for each division: 2
Cheyenne Division .... proportional to registered voten within the Division
Casper Division. . . . .. proportional to registered voten within the Division
Jackson Division ..... proportional to registered voten witbin tbe Division
Fremont Division. . . . . . proportional to registered voten witbia the Division
6. QUALIFIED JURY WHEELS. FOR EACH DNISION
(a) Qualified Jury Wheel for Each Division. The Clerk of Court shall provide and
maintain a Qualified Jury Wheel for each ofthe divisions in this District. The names
of all persons randomly selected from the voter registration lists of the counties in
each division shall be placed in the Qualified Jury Wheel for that division.
(b) Minimum Names in Qualified Jury Wheel. Not less than one thousand (1,000)
names shall be originally placed in each Qualified Jury Wheel. The Court may order
additional names to be placed in the Qualified Jury Wheel when and as needed.
(c) Creation ofS;parate Qualified Wheel in a Diyision. The Qualified Jury Wheels will
be used by the Clerk as the source of names for the grand and petit jury panels for
each division.
(d) Refillina Master Jury Wheel. The Court's master jury wheel shall be purged of all
names and refilled every two years, specifically during each odd numbered year
following a general election.
(e) General Notice of Drawina. Every two years, as defined in this Plan and as needed
2 The pro-rata number of names shall be based on the total number of registered voters
listed in each division as compared to the total number of registered voters in the entire district.
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or directed by the Chief Judge and the Clerk ofCourt, a notice shall be posted in the
Clerk's Offices in Cheyenne and Casper, Wyoming and on the Court's website at
www.wyd.uscourts.aov explaining the process at which names are randomly and,
periodically drawn for jury service.
7. QUALIFYING AND SUMMONSING OF JURORS
(a) QualifyinG. SummonsinG and Creatini JUlY Panels. The Clerk shall publicly draw
at random from the Master Jury Wheel a number ofnames ofpersons, such numbers
to be designated by the Court pursuant to an oral or written order, for qualifying
grand and petit jury panels. The Clerk shall mail a juror qualification questionnaire
to every person randomly selected with a request to fill out and return the form, duly
signed and sworn, to the Clerk by mail or through the Court's internet website within
10 days.
On the basis of the information provided on the questionnaire and other competent
evidence, the Clerk shall determine whether a person is unqualified for, or exempt
from, or to be excused from jury service. The names of all persons drawn from the
Master Jury Wheel who are determined to be qualified as jurors shall be put in a
qualified jury wheel for each division for summonsing at a later date. In order to
conserve funds, the Clerk of Court shall serve the questionnaires and summons to
petit and grand jurors by first class mail, unless otherwise specifically ordered by the
Court.
(b) Disclosure of Juror Information. The actual names so drawn from the Master Jury
Wheel shall not be disclosed before date of appearance and qualification of such
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jurors unless the Court shall otherwise direct. Furthermore, the Clerk of Court shall
not allow any person to view the juror questionnaires without prior permission ofthe
Court. The Clerk shall only diwlge information on jury lists pursuant to the policies
of the E-Govemment Act and the Judicial Conference of the United States.
(c) The Clerk of Court shall not be required to prepare a list of the names drawn from
the Master Jury Wheel for jury service.
(d) No later than three (3) business days prior to the commencement of trial, a list of
jurors shall be distributed to counsel and/or parties. Prior to distribution, the process
used shall be reviewed by the Clerk of Court or designee, to ensure that the list
represents a fair cross section of the persons residing in said counties within the
division, and/or combination of divisions.
8. GRAND JURY
(a) District-wide Selection of Grand JUlY Array. Grand jury panels will be selected on
a district-wide basis and may sit in anyone of the statutory places of holding court
in the district.
(b) Proportional Selection ofQrand Jurors. In order to assure that the registered voters
living in each of the four divisions are proportionally represented on the grand jury
panels, a pro-rata number of names shall be taken from the qualified wheel of each
division and combined together to fill a grand jury panel. The pro-rata number of
names shall be based on the total number ofregistered voters listed in each division
as compared to the total number ofregistered voters in the entire district. The names
of registered voters are those which were last drawn for refilling the Master Wheel.
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(c) Creation of Grand JUly Panels, The assignment of the names of persons to a grand
jury panel shall be conducted in accordance with paragraph 7(a) above.
9, EXEMPTIONS FROM JURY SERVICE.
The following groups of persons or occupational classes are exempt from jury services:
1. Public official ofthe United States, state or local government who is elected to public
office or who is directly appointed by a person elected to public office.
2. Member of any governmental police or regular fire department. (Not including
volunteer or commercial departments).
3. Member in active service of the Armed Forces of the United States.
10. EXCUSES ON INDIVIDUAL REQUESTS.
(a) Occupational Classes and Groups ofPersons, The following occupational classes or
groups ofpersons may be excused from jury service upon individual requests in the
discretion of the Court:
1. Persons over 70 years of age.
2. A person who has served as a grand or petit juror within the last two (2) years.
3. A person having active care and custody ofa child or children under ten (10) years
of age whose health and/or safety would be jeopardized by their absence for jury
service; or a person who is essential to the care of aged or infirm persons.
4. A person whose services are so essential to the operation ofa business, commercial,
or agricultural enterprises, that it must close or cease to function if required to
perform jury duty.
5. Actively practicing or engaged full-time in one of these occupations: Attorney,
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Physician, Dentist; Registered Nurse; member of the Clergy or of a religious order.
6. Volunteer safety personnel who are defined as follows: Individuals serving a public
agency (as defined in Section 1203(6) of Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968) in an official capacity, without compensation, as
firefighters or members of a rescue squad or ambulance crew.
11. DURATION OF SERVICE
In any two-year period, no person shall be required to (a) attend court for prospective service
as a petit juror for a total ofmore than twenty (20) days, except when necessary to complete
service in a particular case, or (b) serve on more than one grand jUlY, or (c) attend as both a
grand and petit juror.
Petit Jurors are required to attend for six (6) months from date ofsummons to appear unless
permanently excused by a Judicial Officer after serving on a trial or upon discretion by a
Judicial Officer.
Grand Jurors are required to attend for eighteen (18) months from date of selection unless
the Grand JUlY Panel's term has been extended in order to complete its work.
12. FORMS
The juror qualification questionnaire shall follow substantially the form required by law and
approved by the Judicial Conference of the United States. Upon such approval, said form
shall be adopted with any necessary modifications thereto to accommodate said form to the
requirements of this District.
13. USE OF ELECTRONIC DATA PROCESSING
(a) Method and Manner ofRanciom Selection. The selection ofnames from source lists
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for the master jury wheel shall be accomplished by a systematically randomized
process through a properly programmed electronic data processing system. A
properly programmed electronic data processing system for systematically
randomized selection shall be used to select names from the master jury wheel for the
purpose of summoning persons to serve as grand or petit jurors. Such random
selection of names from the source lists for inclusion in the master wheel, either
manually or through a combination of manual and computer methods, must ensure
that the county is substantially proportionally represented in the master wheel in
accordance with Title 28, United States Code, Section 1863(b)(3).
(b) Random Drawin&. Random Selection by computer accomplishes three objectives:
i) It establishes the location on the voter name lists, or wheel, from which the
first name is taken;
ii) It removes the possibility of human discretion or choice in selection of any
individual's name (making individual name selections unpredictable and
unpredeterminable), and
iii) It ensures that, at the outset of the drawing, mathematical odds of being
picked are substantially equal for all names in the source from which drawn.
14. PUBLIC ACCESS TO DOCUMENTS.
The office of the Clerk of Court shall retain and, when requested, provide public access to
the following documents:
The court's "Juror Selection Plan," including a verbatim description of the
Rand function or, in the alternative, the method used in determining the
"quotient" and "starting numbers,"
A verbal or graphically charted description ofthe procedure employed
in the automated selection systems, and a copy of the Court's
authorization and instruction order to the person or computer service
organization which carries out automated
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name selection tasks for the court.
Any other information or documents will be disclosed only in accordance with 28 U.S.C.
Section 1867(f) ~8.
Dated this ~ day of_-H.~r...:=,~_~' 2009.
William F. Downes
CbiefJudge
r Clarence A. Brimmer
District Judge
