Jury Exemption for Breast-Feeding Mothers Is OKd
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SACRAMENTO — Breast-feeding mothers would be exempt from jury duty under a bill sent to the governor Monday.
“Jury duty is an important civic right, but breast-feeding is clearly not compatible with jury service,” said the bill’s author, Assemblyman Ted Lempert (D-San Carlos).
Current law allows people to be excused from jury service for “undue hardship,” which can include the obligation to care for a child, and many courts in the state regularly defer jury duty for mothers who are breast-feeding their infants.
However, Angela Ponzini of Menlo Park was told by the San Mateo County jury commissioner that she had to serve because “personal inconvenience” was not a valid excuse.
Ponzini notified Lempert about her experience, saying, “Providing the best care and nutrition for my child is not a personal inconvenience.”
The Assembly voted 54 to 0 to approve Senate amendments to the bill, which sent it to Gov. Gray Davis.
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