On November 9, 2022, a double murder conviction (March 2022) in Fairfax County, Virginia, was vacated by the trial court due to a juror having experimented with use of a rifle for suicide. The defense had presented evidence of possible suicide with a rifle. A juror went home and used a rifle to see if that was physically possible. Because of the weight and length of the .22 ca rifle the juror determined that suicide in that manner was not possible. She shared her experiment with her fellow jurors during deliberations. Prosecutors have indicated they will retry the case. Once again, one juror violating the judge's admonitions has caused a waste of public and private resources in the tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.
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.
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