George W. Bush at jury duty. Twitter/@TexasGOP When a former president shows up to jury duty, it becomes pretty hard to justify your latest excuse to skip the dreaded civic duty.

Former President George W. Bush surprised everyone at the George Allen courthouse in Dallas, Texas, on Wednesday, when he arrived for jury duty. The former president took his responsibility seriously in the courtroom of Judge Eric Moyé, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Prior to Bush's arrival, Secret Service agents began to secure the courthouse. The other potential jurors were amazed when Bush walked in, but the former president explained that he was there to serve, fellow civilian Sheri Coleman told the paper.

Bush reportedly agreed to take pictures with just about everyone in the courthouse — including bailiffs, clerks, and summer interns. Joel Ehambe, another potential juror, thought he recognized the man seated directly behind him, but he was amazed when Moyé announced a former president was among the juror pool.

"We were sitting there, and the president, he was making a lot of jokes, and he had a lot of people laughing in there," Ehambe told local news station WFAA.

Apart from the photographs and jokes, Bush seemed to take the rest of the proceedings seriously.

“He understood it was important. He took it in good nature, and he was engaged and talked to the lawyers," Moyé told the Dallas News.

Bush was not selected to serve on the jury — but not for the reason you might expect. Moyé said that Bush's high-profile wasn't an issue. There was simply no room left on the jury.

Bush spent just more than three hours in the courthouse, his spokesman, Freddy Ford, told The Dallas Morning News.