Juror Claims He’s “Too Homophobic and Racist” To Serve On Jury

If you want to get out of jury duty, you probably shouldn't use this guy's excuse.

A British man was exempted from jury duty after telling the judge he was "too homophobic and racist" to serve on the jury. Now, the prosecutors for the case are filing a complaint against the man for contempt of court and failing to serve.

The Daily Echo reports that the man's identity is being kept anonymous for now but that Judge Gary Burrell QC read the leader in open court. In the letter, the man writes:

"I strongly believe that it would be a serious injustice to the legal system to select me for jury service.

"I hold extreme prejudices against homosexuals and black/foreign people and couldn't possibly be impartial if either appeared in court. Therefore it would not be in the court's interest to have me a juror."

In addition, the man said that if he were selected, he also would not pay attention to the case and would simply vote with the majority.

What I don't get is why the prosecutors are going after him now. I can understand the prosecutors thinking he was just trying to get out of jury duty. But he was still excused by the court, and trying to prove he was lying would be a costly and, honestly, pointless venture. Personally, I would much prefer to kick off an honest, yet racist man off a jury than to have someone serve who's going to be extremely prejudice and not even give the defendant a chance to prove his innocence.