THE COURTS
PART I. GENERAL
[234 PA. CODE CH. 1100]
Jury Lists and Juror Qualification Forms
[29 Pa.B. 4430]
Introduction The Criminal Procedural Rules Committee is planning to recommend that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania amend Rule 1104 (Juror Qualification Form, Lists of Trial Jurors, and Challenge to the Array). This proposal would remove ambiguous language and clarify that an attorney may inspect and copy or photograph the jury lists and the juror qualification forms. This proposal has not been submitted for review by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
The following explanatory Report highlights the Committee's considerations in formulating this proposal. Please note that the Committee's Reports should not be confused with the official Committee Comments to the rules. Also note that the Supreme Court does not adopt the Committee's Comments or the contents of the explanatory Reports.
The text of the proposed rule changes precedes the Report.
We request that interested persons submit suggestions, comments or objections concerning this proposal to the Committee through counsel, Anne T. Panfil, Chief Staff Counsel, Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, P. O. Box 1325, Doylestown, PA 18901, no later than Wednesday, September 22, 1999.
By the Criminal Procedural Rules Committee
J. MICHAEL EAKIN,
Chair
Annex A
TITLE 234. RULES OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I. GENERAL
CHAPTER 1100. TRIAL Rule 1104. Juror Qualification Form, Lists of Trial Jurors, and Challenge to the Array.
(A) Juror Qualification Form and Lists of Trial Jurors. The officials designated by law to select persons for jury service shall:
* * * * * (2) prepare, publish, and post lists of the names of persons to serve as jurors as provided by law; [and]
(3) upon the request of the attorney for the Commonwealth or the defendant's attorney, furnish [a] the list containing the names of prospective jurors prepared pursuant to paragraph (A)(2) [summoned to try the case together with copies of the juror qualification forms returned by such prospective jurors]; and
(4) make available for review and copying copies of the juror qualification forms returned by the prospective jurors.
(B) Challenge to the Array.
* * * * * Official Note: Adopted January 24, 1968, effective August 1, 1968; Comment revised January 28, 1983, effective July 1, 1983; amended September 15, 1993, effective January 1, 1994; the September 15, 1993 amendments suspended December 17, 1993 until further Order of the Court; the September 15, 1993 Order amending Rule 1104 is superseded by the September 18, 1998 Order, and Rule 1104 is amended September 18, 1998, effective July 1, 1999; amended May 14, 1999, effective July 1, 1999 ; amended , 1999, effective .
Comment The qualification, selection, and summoning of prospective jurors, as well as related matters, are generally dealt with in Chapter 45, Subchapters A--C, of the Judicial Code, 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 4501--4503, 4521--4526, 4531--4532. ''Law'' as used in paragraph (B)(2) of this rule is intended to include these Judicial Code provisions. However, paragraphs (B) (1) and (2) of this rule are intended to supersede the procedures set forth in Section 4526(a) of the Judicial Code and that provision is suspended as being inconsistent with this rule. See PA. CONST. art. V[.], § 10; 42 Pa.C.S. § 4526(c). Sections 4526(b) and (d)--(f) of the Judicial Code are not affected by this rule.
Paragraph (A) was amended in 1998 to require that the counties use the juror qualification forms provided for in Section 4521 of the Judicial Code, 42 Pa.C.S. § 4521. It is intended that the attorneys in a case may [request and receive copies of] inspect and copy or photograph the jury lists and the qualification forms for the prospective jurors summoned for their case. The information on the qualification forms is not to be disclosed except as provided by this rule or by statute. See also Rule 1107, which requires that jurors complete the standard, confidential information questionnaire for use during voir dire.
COMMITTEE EXPLANATORY REPORTS:
* * * * * Final Report explaining the May 14, 1999 amendments placing titles in paragraphs (A) and (B) published with the Court's Order at 29 Pa.B. 2778 (May 29, 1999).
Report explaining the proposed amendments concerning copies of the juror qualification forms published with the Court's Order at 29 Pa.B. 4431 (August 21, 1999).
REPORT
Proposed Amendments to Pa.R.Crim.P. 1104
Juror Qualification Forms The Committee received correspondence concerning the Rule 1104 provision requiring that ''the officials designated by law to select persons for jury service shall...upon the request of the attorney for the Commonwealth or the defendant's attorney, furnish a list containing the names of prospective jurors summoned to try the case together with copies of the juror qualification forms returned by such prospective jurors.'' (Emphasis added). See Rule 1104(A)(3). The correspondents questioned what was intended by ''jurors summoned to try the case'' and ''such prospective jurors'' in this provision of the rule. They were concerned that, if the phrases refer to the jurors who will be selected from the pool for a specific trial, the information may not be known until the day of trial. The correspondents noted that this is a major problem for those judicial districts in which jurors are summoned on a specific day. On the other hand, if the phrases refer to the entire pool of jurors to whom the qualification forms had been sent, then it ''would be a cumbersome, time consuming and expensive effort'' to require the officials to furnish the copies of the juror qualification forms for all of the jurors summoned for a particular ''trial term.''
After discussing the correspondence, the Committee agreed that the issues raised in the correspondence merited clarification in the rule. Although the correspondents' confusion specifically focused on the meaning of the phrases highlighted above, the Committee also agreed that an additional, correlative matter concerning the scope of attorney's access to the forms requires clarification in Rule 1104.
Acknowledging that there are no reasons why an attorney should not be given access to the jury lists and qualification forms,1 the Committee considered why an attorney might want to have copies of them. We identified two reasons: (1) when the attorney is considering challenging the array; and (2) when the attorney wants to compare the answers on the qualification forms with the answers submitted by the jurors on the information questionnaires. See Rule 1107.
Although we agreed that an attorney should have access to the jury lists and qualification forms, the Committee also reasoned that after an attorney has the opportunity to review the lists and the forms, if the attorney wants copies or photographs of the lists or the completed juror qualification forms, the burden of making the copies or photographs should be on the attorney. We agreed that this requirement should prevent attorneys from pro forma requesting the forms, and would address the concerns of the correspondents that requiring the officials to make and pay for the copies would be a ''cumbersome, time-consuming and expensive effort.''
Returning to the correspondents' concerns about the phrase ''prospective jurors summoned to try the case,'' the Committee agreed with the correspondents that the language is confusing because there does not appear to be a uniform or widely accepted definition of the phrase ''summoned to try the case.'' See Rule 1104(A)(3). From our review and the members' experiences in practice, the Committee identified three different time periods to which the language could refer: 1) the jurors selected for service from the annual master list prepared by the jury selection commission pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 4521(a); 2) the pool of jurors summoned for service on a particular day; or 3) those jurors summoned for service and sent to a particular courtroom. Practically speaking, the members agreed that the intent of the rule when amended in 1998 was to allow the attorneys access to the forms and lists in advance of trial as an aid if there will be a challenge to the array.
In view of these considerations, the Committee is proposing the following changes to Rule 1104. Paragraph (A)(3) would be fine-tuned to make it clear that upon request the jury official is required to furnish the list containing the names of prospective jurors that is required to be prepared, published, and posted under paragraph (A)(2). In addition, the troublesome phrase ''prospective jurors summoned to try the case'' would be deleted. A new paragraph (A)(4) would make it clear that, when requested by the attorney, the official is required to make available for review and copying copies of the juror qualification forms returned by the prospective jurors. Finally, the Comment would emphasize that the attorneys may inspect and copy or photograph the jury lists and the qualification forms.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 99-1358. Filed for public inspection August 20, 1999, 9:00 a.m.] _______
1 As part of our discussion, the Committee considered whether there would be any reason why an attorney should not receive the lists and juror qualification forms. We took a look at the case law in Pennsylvania, and were unable to find any cases addressing the issue. The Committee also reviewed the Pennsylvania statutes governing the selection of jurors, which also are silent on the issue of providing an attorney with the forms. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 4521, et seq.
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