Section 38-5-10.1 - Postponement of petit jury service. - New Mexico Statutes

38-5-10.1. Postponement of petit jury service.

A.     A person scheduled to appear for service on a petit jury may request a postponement of the date of initial appearance for jury service.  The request for postponement shall be granted if the juror:

(1)     has not previously been granted a postponement; and

(2)     agrees to a future date, approved by the court, when the juror will appear for jury service that is not more than six months after the date on which the prospective juror originally was called to serve.

B.     A subsequent request to postpone jury service may be approved by the court only in the event of an emergency that could not have been anticipated at the time the initial postponement was granted.  Prior to the grant of a subsequent postponement, the prospective juror must agree to a future date on which the juror will appear for jury service within six months of the postponement.

C.     A court shall postpone and reschedule the service of a summoned juror, without affecting the summoned juror's right to request a postponement under Subsections A and B of this section, if the summoned juror is:

(1)     employed by an employer with five or fewer full-time employees, or their equivalent, and another employee of the same employer is summoned to appear during the same period;

(2)     the only person performing particular services for a business, commercial or agricultural enterprise and whose services are so essential to the operations of the business, commercial or agricultural enterprise that the enterprise must close or cease to function if the person is required to perform jury duty; or

(3)     required to attend to an emergency as determined by the judge.