MN Supreme Court Justice warns of jury duty scams

POLK COUNTY, Minn. (Valley News Live) - A Chief Justice with the Minnesota Supreme Court says counties and district courts are hearing about scammers preying on Minnesotans with fake jury duty phone calls.

“Jury duty is an important civic duty. I commend citizens who report for jury service and urge Minnesotans to learn about and protect themselves from the potentially devastating consequences of these scams,” said Chief Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea.

Recently, scammers are calling people and pretending to be from Minnesota courts. In some cases, they spoof the court telephone number so it looks like the call is originating from the court or from a law enforcement agency.

In these calls, the scammer says people must pay a fine for missing jury service. The scammer might ask for a credit card number or suggest another way to pay the fine and avoid jail time. The scammers may demand that people provide payment or private information that the scammer can use to steal your identity.

Chief Justice Gildea reminds all Minnesotans that if they are summoned for state jury duty, initial contact will always be made by U.S. Mail in the form of a juror summons from a Minnesota district court. Minnesota courts will never contact a person by phone or e-mail and seek payment of fines, Social Security numbers, credit card information, or any other sensitive information in response to missed jury duty.

If you receive a suspicious call seeking payment or private data related to missed jury duty, contact your local county sheriff’s office. People with questions about jury duty service should contact their local district court or the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.