Do your duty — or else

Do your duty — or else

The old saying about only having to die and pay taxes has just gotten longer by half. You have to show up for jury duty if summoned, at least if the presiding jurist is Mahoning County Common Pleas Judge R. Scott Krichbaum.

Krichbaum is overseeing the Mahoning County grand jury session that began May 3 and runs through August.

To say he was unhappy on opening day when he counted heads and four potential jurors were missing would be an understatement.

He summoned them to court and gave each an option: show up at his courtroom every Thursday morning — which is what grand jurors are expected to do — or serve 10 days in jail . All chose the get-out-of-jail card they were offered.

Krichbaum has gotten a headline or two for past practices involving stiff sentences and scathing pre-sentence lectures to defendants. And he’s gotten some criticism, too.

But it’s hard for anyone to find fault in this case. Jurors — whether they are called to the grand jury or duty in common pleas or lower courts — are a vital part of the process. And while there may be a valid reason for an individual to have jury duty postponed, ignoring the call isn’t an option. You gotta pay taxes, you gotta die and you gotta answer a court’s summons.