Juror Tweets Could Create Mistrial 148
nandemoari writes "Russell Wright and his construction company, Stoam Holdings, recently lost a $12 million dollar lawsuit brought by investors. But lawyers for the firm have complained that juror Johnathan Powell's Twitter comments broke rules when discussing the civil case with the public. The arguments in this dispute center on two points. Powell insists (and the evidence appears to back him up) that he did not make any pertinent updates until after the verdict was given; if that's the case, the objection would presumably be thrown out. If Powell did post updates during the trial, the judge must decide whether he was actively discussing the case. Powell says he only posted messages and did not read any replies. Intriguingly, the lawyers for Stoam Holding are not arguing so much that other people directly influenced Powell's judgment, rather that he might have felt a need to agree to a spectacular verdict to impress the people reading his posts."
Re:Guh. (Score:2, Informative)
What part of "He insists he didn't say anything until after the verdict" don't you understand?
And this is explicitly mentioned in the summary, you don't even have to RTFA to see it. Do you just read the first line of all your email before you respond.
Now who is the idiot?
almost happened in PA Senator corruption trial (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Is that a Canary? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:It's like notetaking? (Score:5, Informative)
There are. You're given a notebook (and extras, if you need them) to take all the notes you want/need. Every juror sits in the same seat, every day, and those notebooks never leave the courtroom until the jury goes to deliberate, at which time the jury takes their notes with them. Those are the only notes you're supposed to take.
IANAL, but I have been a juror.
Re:It's the Juror's Fault (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Make him pay for the 2nd trial (Score:3, Informative)
Jury duty is part of the price for having a free society (theory). It's about being an adult and taking responsibility for trying to live in the kind of society the US is (or was depending how cynical you are) trying to be. Sure, the reality is it sucks and feels like a huge waste of time but if your only motivator for doing something you don't want is money then chances are you're A) bad with relationships and B) going to lose some rights you'd really rather not.
I find myself saying this more and more, there are two things people in general need to do: Lighten up and grow up.