
August 31, 2004 |
2004-R-0525 | |
JURORS-PLEDGE OF ALLEGIENCE | ||
By: Susan Price, Principal Analyst | ||
You asked whether jurors are required to recite the Pledge of Allegiance before serving, and if not, whether they can be required to do so.
People are not required to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in order to serve as jurors. Such a requirement would most likely violate the U. S. Constitution’s First Amendment, which protects citizens from the government’s efforts to compel them to state a belief. (West Virginia v. Barnette, 319 U. S. 624 (1943) ((school district cannot expel students for refusing to recite the pledge)).
SP: ts