Petit jurors are sworn to hear evidence in civil and criminal trials and render a verdict. In Lake County, petit jurors are summoned for one week. Grand jurors, on the other hand, have the duty to receive complaints and accusations in criminal cases, hear the evidence presented by the State and find bills of indictment in cases where they are satisfied there is probable cause to believe a crime has been committed. A grand jury is composed of 16 citizens, and at least 12 members must be present at each session before the grand jury may transact business. Grand jurors in Lake County serve one day a week, for a period of 4 months.
Jury duty is a right and a responsibility of American citizenship.
Jury duty, along with voting, is one of the primary means by which the average citizen participates in our government. Developing a historical appreciation for the role of juries contributes to willingness and ability of citizens to serve as impartial jurors when called to judge their peers. Use of juries is just one thread running through the historical development of the American judicial system. The value of these guarantees are shown by how our national and state governments have retained them, in strength through each change of status, from colonies to nation, from territory to state. It is a course of legal proceedings according to the rules and principles established by custom and constitution for the enforcement and protection of the rights of private citizens.