Sec. 1344.

(1) A juror must be reimbursed for his or her traveling expenses at a rate, determined by the county board of commissioners, that is not less than 10 cents per mile or, beginning April 1, 2018, not less than 20 cents per mile for traveling from the juror's residence to the place of holding court and returning for each day or 1/2 day of actual attendance at sessions of the court.

(2) A juror also must be compensated at a rate, determined by the county board of commissioners, as follows:

(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), a rate determined as follows:

(i) For the first day or 1/2 day of actual attendance at the court, not less than $25.00 per day and $12.50 per 1/2 day.

(ii) For each subsequent day or 1/2 day of actual attendance at the court, not less than $40.00 per day and $20.00 per 1/2 day.

(b) Beginning April 1, 2018, and every subsequent fiscal year, if, as of the end of the 2 most recent fiscal years, the state court administrator, at the direction of the supreme court and upon confirmation by the state treasurer, determines that sufficient funds are available in the juror compensation reimbursement fund created in section 151d, a rate determined as follows:

(i) For the first day or 1/2 day of actual attendance at the court, not less than $30.00 per day and $15.00 per 1/2 day.

(ii) For each subsequent day or 1/2 day of actual attendance at the court, not less than $45.00 per day and $22.50 per 1/2 day.

(3) If an action is removed from the circuit court to a lower court, the jury fee must be paid to the circuit court whether paid before or after removal of the action to the lower court, and the circuit court is responsible for payment of the compensation to the juror involved.

(4) A clerk or deputy clerk of the court who fraudulently issues a certificate of attendance of a juror on which the juror receives pay, except as allowed by law, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 6 months or a fine of not more than $500.00, or both.

(5) As used in this section, "sufficient funds" means an amount exceeding $2,000,000.00 in the juror compensation reimbursement fund created in section 151d.

History: Add. 1968, Act 326, Eff. Nov. 15, 1968 ;-- Am. 1969, Act 326, Eff. Sept. 1, 1969 ;-- Am. 1980, Act 190, Imd. Eff. July 8, 1980 ;-- Am. 1982, Act 226, Imd. Eff. Sept. 16, 1982 ;-- Am. 2002, Act 739, Eff. Oct. 1, 2003 ;-- Am. 2017, Act 51, Eff. Sept. 13, 2017