IN THE FIFTIETH JUDICIAL DISTRICT, PARISH OF PEINE DE MORT
STATE OF LOUISIANA
No. _____

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STATE OF LOUISIANA, Plaintiff
v.
JOHN CLIENT, Defendant

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MOTION TO SERVE JURY SUMMONS BY MAIL AND TO
FORBID THE EXTRAJUDICIAL EXCLUSION OF ANY JUROR

COMES NOW, JOHN CLIENT, by counsel, and moves this Court pursuant to the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, and Article 1, Sections 2, 3, 5, 13, 14, 16 & 17 of the Louisiana Constitution to order that the jury summons to each juror be mailed in this case, and to forbid the extrajudicial exclusion of any prospective jurors. In support of this motion, Mr. Client states as follows:

1. The summoning of the jury is a very sensitive aspect of any capital trial and can result in the creation of issues which can be very costly to the state. For this reason, extraordinary measures must be taken to assure that there is no impropriety in the manner in which service is completed.
2. It is no secret that there has been proof of impropriety (most notably the infamous practice of "gutter service," where the summonses for certain jurors get no further than the first available drain) in the past in the services of subpoenas in various parishes around the state.
3. Perhaps more subtle than this, however, is the opportunity for the server to indicate to the prospective juror any number of things--from the possible nature of the case, to excuses that have worked in the past to avoid jury service.
4. Perhaps the most effective way of both assuring lack of taint, and ensuring that a representative sample of jurors show up, is to serve jurors by mail sufficiently in advance of the trial so that returned letters may be investigated for newer addresses, and the jurors found.
5. Additionally, to the extent that there may once have been a practice of excusing jurors prior to court, this should not be permitted. This is a capital case. Everything must be on the record. No juror may be excused without Mr. Client and his counsel being present.
WHEREFORE, Mr. Client respectfully moves this Court order that the jury summonses be sent by mail in this case, and that no prospective juror be excluded without Mr. Client and counsel being notified and provided the opportunity to be present.
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