Bride Was Preparing for Destination Wedding in Italy When She Received a Surprising Court Summons (Exclusive)

Bride Katrina Badowski was shocked after being summoned for jury duty on her wedding day, and she acted fast to be excused. ‘The odds of being called on the exact day of my wedding feels like one of those moments where the universe has a sense of humor,’ she tells PEOPLE.

Courtesy Katrina Badowski

NEED TO KNOW

Katrina Badowski was summoned for jury duty on the same day as her destination wedding

The bride successfully requested a postponement by providing proof of her wedding plans to the court

Her social media post about the coincidence went viral, sparking stories of others’ inconvenient jury summons

Of all the days to be called for jury duty, a bride was summoned for service on the very same date as her wedding.

Katrina Badowski, 35, and Billie Rodriguez, 42, will say “I do” in a ceremony at Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City on Monday, Aug. 31. Just over two weeks before the destination wedding, Badowski received a Wyandotte County District Court Jury Summons and was shocked to see that she had been randomly selected for jury duty on her wedding day.

“I find it deeply ironic that I haven’t been summoned for jury duty in over a decade, as I would genuinely welcome the opportunity. I’ve always thought it would be fascinating to experience that civic responsibility, particularly for a complex or high-profile case,” Badowski tells PEOPLE. “But when I saw the date on the summons, my jaw physically dropped.”

The bride-to-be, who opened the mail on Friday, Aug. 14, continued, “The odds of being called on the exact day of my wedding feels like one of those moments where the universe has a sense of humor.”

Ignoring a jury summons can lead to a court hearing and monetary fines. However, Badowski can’t report for service, even if she wanted to.

“Because of the nature of our destination wedding, with all flights, venues, and vendors booked and paid for, it is entirely impossible for me to attend,” she explains.

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In the final rush of wedding planning, the notice fell to the bottom of Badowski’s to-do pile. When she revisited it on Thursday, Aug. 20, she immediately emailed the jury clerk to request a postponement, explaining that she’s getting married on that exact date and would be “more than happy to fulfill [her] civic duty” once she returns to Kansas from Italy in September. She sent the link to her wedding website as proof, and offered to provide transportation documentation.

Luckily, the next morning on Friday, Aug. 21, the Office of the Jury Clerk replied: “Received and excused you from jury duty. Thank you and Congratulations 😊.”

“Crisis averted!” Badowski says.

Her fiancé jokes, “Of course that happened because she is always highly sought after. I am glad to be able to snag her away from official summons for our special day.”

Courtesy Katrina Badowski

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Because the coincidental jury duty timing was “just too funny,” Badowski shared a video of her holding the notice on social media on Thursday, Aug. 20. She wrote in an onscreen text overlay, “The odds of you being summoned for jury duty on your wedding day are low, but never zero...” and added in the caption, “Lol k 😂.”

The video has amassed more than 40,000 likes and nearly 400 comments. Many commenters shared similar experiences of being summoned during unfavorable times, such as birthdays and graduations.

“It’s been funny to see all the commentary online with other people’s experiences being summoned for jury duty at inopportune times, or some people’s wild advice on how I could handle it,” Badowski tells PEOPLE. “Thankfully, communication is a powerful tool and the District Court was reasonable.”

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