How Jurors are Selected
The court uses a two-step process to select jurors. First, a master jury wheel is created by selecting names at random from a list of registered voters in each county in the Southern District of Mississippi. Names are then drawn from the master jury wheel to receive juror qualification questionnaires. These questionnaires determine whether individuals are legally qualified to serve. The names of qualified individuals are added to a second jury wheel, a qualified jury wheel. As prospective jurors are needed for petit or grand jury service, summonses are sent to persons randomly selected from the qualified jury wheel.
These selections are carried out through an electronic data processing system for randomized selection. The randomized process ensures that the odds of any one person being selected are substantially equal.