Juror Accused of Asking Med-Mal Plaintiff's Dad for a Cut of Any Verdict
A juror in a medical malpractice trial was arrested when he showed up in a New York courthouse on Tuesday.
Deonarine Persaud, 53, of Long Beach was accused of soliciting a bribe for a favorable verdict, report the Long Island Press and the Associated Press. His alleged offer: He would sway fellow jurors in exchange for 5 percent of the verdict.
Prosecutors allege Persaud presented his offer to the plaintiff’s father at a Home Depot in Freeport. The meeting was the result of a phone call to the plaintiff’s mother in which Persaud maintained he had important information about the defendant, prosecutors say.
Persaud was charged in Nassau County with felony bribe receiving and misdemeanor juror misconduct, the stories say. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison.