It is reported in the Twin Cities newspapers that on September 13 a juror in a Hennepin County (MN)murder trial has been dismissed for speaking to a prosecution witness in the hallway outside the courtroom during a break. Judge Cahill is reported to have given a stern warning (threat of contempt and jail) to members of the audience, both in English and in Somali via an interpreter, that they must not speak to wittnesses.
In May 2011 during the infamous Casey Anthony murder trial a prospective juror was fined $450 during jury selection for talking to a reporter despite having been instructed not to talk to anyone about the case. After being fined he said, "Well, at least I got out of jury duty."
A blog about the very small percentage of jurors who fail to follow the judge's instructions, including doing independent Internet research, using social media (such as Facebook) to contact parties and lawyers, and blogging about the trial. Juror misconduct frequently results in mistrials and a waste of resources. Links will be provided to sample jury summonses, jury instructions, and other resources to improve juror education and minimize juror misconduct, thereby promoting fairness of trials.

Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment