Via press release on November 22, 2024, the Commission detailed the distribution of its newly published pamphlet on juror mental health resources to President Judges and District Court Administrators in each of Pennsylvania’s 60 judicial districts.
The mental health impact that serving on a jury poses is a significant barrier to jury service. To equip jurors post-trial with resources that mitigate this impact, the Commission developed a “plug and play” pamphlet template that can be modified for use in districts across the Commonwealth. The pamphlet, which has been reviewed by mental health and legal practitioners, includes information on juror stress and vicarious trauma and designates space for districts to insert their own county seal(s) and references to local mental health resources.
It is our hope that districts that do not currently provide a post-trial jury service pamphlet (or that are interested in updating their existing pamphlet form) will modify our pamphlet for local use.
Check out the press release above to learn more!