Fully Informed Jury Association - New Hampshire

"The role of our jurors is to protect private citizens from dangerous government laws and actions. Many existing laws erode and deny the rights of the people. Jurors protect against tyranny by refusing to convict harmless people. Our country's founders planned and expected that we, the people, would exercise this power and authority to judge the law as well as the facts every time we serve as jurors. Juries are the last peaceful defense of our civil liberties.

FIJA works to restore and protect the role of the juror, and the institution of Trial by Jury. We sponsor educational seminars for legal professionals, publish commentary, develop and presenticus briefs when the institution of the jury is at issue, provide interviews to the media, speak at functions and in classrooms, and of course distribute educational literature. Our newsletter Theerican Juror is published quarterly. We articulate that the authority of the jury is the right that protects all other rights."

From http://fija.org/about/

This web page is about distributing FIJA education literature - specifically, about the form of FIJA activism where people (such as you and me) stand near a court while prospective jurors arrive and make available to them pamphlets informing them of their rights as jurors (including Jury Nullification). It takes five minutes to read this page, and at the end you will have everything you need to go right out and get involved (assuming you live in New Hampshire).

FIJA, as well as other organizations, thinkers, and writers have done a far better job than I can of explaining the notion of jury rights and why they are important, so I encourage you to explore their work and come to your own understanding of the nature and importance of the issue. This page is for FIJA activists, and so the real Why we're concerned with here is Why this particular form of FIJA activism:

"Here's why:

1. Potential jurors are the best prospects for this message. They are about to go into the selection process and are more likely to be interested in matters regarding their rights as a juror at this time moreso than any other point in their life.
2. Jury selection usually involves a whole lot of waiting. People who have been before know this, but first-timers may not. They will really appreciate having something to read (the FIJA pamphlet) when they sit down in the waiting area.
3. Done consistently, you can reach every potential juror with FIJA information. That's effective!"

From Ian Freeman's essay

In New Hampshire, only the Superior Court holds jury trials, and there are only eleven Superior Court locations in the state - one for each of the ten counties, with two in Hillsborough County. Prospective jurors are called in on particular days (usually Monday) to be chosen, and generally arrive at the court in the morning.

So, this is the recipe:

1. Find the location of the Superior Court nearest you (see the table below).
2. Print out and fold copies of the FIJA pamphlet.
3. Show up (preferably with some friends) in front of the court before it opens on the appropriate day of the week or month and offer pamphlets to any prospective jurors entering the building. Usually, after 30-45 minutes, you're done!

Each court has slight different hours and scheduling of juror arrivals. I still trying to acquire this data. If you know anything about this, please contact me.

You!

• The FIJA pamphlet (one page, double-sided, tri-fold, printable in black and white)
• Fully Informed Jury Association (the National organization)
• Handing out FIJA Literature Around Courthouses (a Word document with useful information and tips from FIJA.org)
• Essay about FIJA activism by Ian Freeman (with useful tips in the comments section)
• Ian Freeman discussing FIJA on the Ridley Report (includes overview of the process and actual footage of FIJA activism)