JURY DUTY SCAMS ARE OCCURRING MORE OFTEN IN FLORIDA
State officials from Tallahassee to Miami have issued warnings about the latest wave of jury duty scam.
Mayor Daniella Levine Cava was recently joined by Eleventh Circuit Chief Judge Nushin Sayfie and Miami-Dade Clerk Ad Interim Luis Montaldo to issue an alert about the scam.
Callers are threatening would-be victims with jail time for not paying fines associated with missing jury duty.
However, this is a scam. The 11th
Circuit website warns people "If you get a call about a jury summons, it's a scam" and to "Remember that summonses are never delivered by phone or email, only U.S. Postal mail."
In a statement, Montaldo assures that court clerks "will not harass or threaten you via any form of communication concerning jury duty" and that "we will never threaten to impose financial penalties."
Anyone who feels they were targeted by this scam is encouraged to contact the Miami-Dade Clerk of Courts by phone at
768-828-5879 to "address any of your concerns about jury duty or any mail you have received."
Attorney General Ashley Moody noted that the scams were reported in five Florida counties within the past year and calls the ploy "disgraceful."
According to Moody, "There are a few civic duties as important to our judicial system as serving on a jury" and "as a former judge, I'm livid that anyone would exploit this honorable process to scare citizens into paying a ransom."
Jury duty scams have been reported by multiple clerks of court in the past year, including
Brevard, Citrus, Clay, Manatee, and Sarasota Counties.
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