Juries
Robert Blake Lawyer Argues for Reversal of $30M Verdict Due to Jury Misconduct
Posted Jan 16, 2008, 07:32 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
A lawyer for actor Robert Blake asked a California appeals court yesterday to overturn a $30 million damages verdict against him for his wife’s death.
Lawyer M. Gerald Schwartzbach said his client did not get a fair trial because of jury misconduct, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Court papers detailed the allegations. One juror didn’t disclose that her daughter was serving a life sentence in prison for murder. Another urged jurors to find the former Baretta star liable to send a message to rich celebrities that they can’t escape justice. Another was hard of hearing and relied on fellow jurors to fill him in on what he missed, the Associated Press reports.
"All we asked for was a fair trial, and it wasn't," Schwartzbach told the judges during oral arguments. "Celebrities have the same rights as anybody else. . . . Mr. Blake was denied that."
Blake was acquitted of the murder of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, in 2005, but he was found liable for the death the same year. Bakley was shot and killed outside a restaurant in 2001.
Blake has filed for bankruptcy and Schwartzbach is not getting paid for his legal work.
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