Gov. Phil Murphy issuing an executive order at New Hope Baptist Church in East Orange on Jan. 11, 2025, that allows people with criminal convictions to serve on juries. (Photo courtesy of the New Jersey Governor’s Office)
EAST ORANGE — Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order Sunday that restores jury service rights to New Jerseyans with felony convictions, using his clemency powers just days before he leaves office to advance a policy initiative he said will allow juries to be “more representative of the communities they serve.”
“About 350,000 New Jerseyans, which is about 4% of our state’s population, have been denied the opportunity to perform one of the most fundamental civic duties,” Murphy said at New Hope Baptist Church in East Orange. “Today, we widen the circle of justice and acknowledge that a system cannot call itself fair if it excludes the people who have taken responsibility for their actions, rebuilt their lives, and earned their freedom.”
Moments after he signed the order, Murphy handed the pen he used to Dameon Stackhouse, who spent more than a decade in prison for robbery and is now a fellow at the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice in Newark.
“This is a pivotal moment for all of us who have faced the stigma of conviction, affirming that our contributions matter and that we are an integral part of the democratic process,” Stackhouse said. “Serving on a jury is not only a responsibility; it is a chance to participate actively in shaping the future.”
State law bars people with criminal convictions from serving on juries. The Legislature has considered legislation that would have eased the ban, but the bill never advanced in this session. It passed the Assembly in January 2024 but did not move in the Senate.
Murphy, a Democrat, has been on something of a clemency spree in his final days in office, after spending most of his two terms as governor issuing no pardons. Since December 2024, he has pardoned or commuted sentences for more than 300 people. Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill (D) becomes the new governor on Jan. 20.
Amol Sinha, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, applauded the move.
“People with criminal convictions who have served their sentences are as capable of serving as jurors as anyone else,” said Sinha, whose organization launched an initiative in 2024 to push for a more expansive use of the governor’s clemency powers. “Today’s executive order will help repair some of the harms caused by excluding returning citizens from this vital civic duty.”
The order allows people with convictions to serve on juries after they have completed their entire sentence, including probation and parole, if their conviction came before Jan. 10, 2026.
Critics of Murphy’s order believe he went beyond the reasonable bounds of his clemency powers. State Sen. Michael Testa (R-Cumberland) said Murphy with this order used those powers to bypass the Legislature, and has no legal authority to rewrite jury eligibility standards.
“Clemency exists to lessen punishment imposed on an individual. The exclusion of convicted criminals from jury service is not a punishment at all – it is a policy judgment designed to protect the integrity, impartiality, and public credibility of the judicial system,” Testa said. “Any impact on offenders is incidental to that goal, not punitive in nature, and therefore well outside the constitutional scope of the Governor’s clemency power.”
Murphy’s order notes that the governor has the power to issue a partial pardon or to restore one or more specific rights, such as the right to serve on a jury, for people who have been convicted of crimes. The order says it “shall not be considered a full pardon or remission of guilt.”
In an interview after he signed the executive order, Murphy said his clemency initiatives are “not only well within the law, but the right thing to do.”
“We have a society where if you commit a crime, you accept responsibility, you serve your time, you have every right to serve on a jury,” Murphy said. “It’s not a life sentence. It’s just not.”
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