Juries

Jury Deadlocks in Trial of Man Accused of Killing Ex-Bar President

A jury has deadlocked in the trial of homeless man accused of killing a former president of the California State Bar during a sexual tryst two years ago. The defendant, Michael Salvador Anunciation, was accused of killing Garvin Shallenberger, who was state bar president in 1977-78, the Daily Journal reports.…

Jul 22, 2008 4:24 PM CDT

‘Tell it to the Judge’ Survey to Query Witnesses, Lawyers About Fairness

Lawyers, witnesses, police officers and other court participants in nine states will be asked to fill out surveys asking them about the fairness of the proceedings. The “Tell it to the Judge” surveys are being conducted by 10 judges affiliated with the American Judges Association and in cooperation with the…

Jul 15, 2008 5:18 PM CDT

Potential Juror Curses Judge and Lands in Jail

A potential juror in Florida ended up in a jail cell rather than the courtroom when she apparently called the judge an asshole for refusing to dismiss her from jury service. Sarah Muller told the Ocala Star Banner she was unhappy that the judge dismissed another juror but refused to…

Jul 15, 2008 4:59 PM CDT

Judge Seeks Arrest of 92 Jury-Duty Shirkers, Gets Some Results

Twelve Washington, D.C., residents have turned themselves in or been arrested for shirking jury duty. The 12 people are among 92 who are subject to arrest for failing to show up for jury duty, reports The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times. Judge Rufus King III of Washington, D.C., superior…

Jul 15, 2008 4:20 PM CDT

Houston Congresswoman Calls for Hearings on Local Justice System

A congresswoman from Houston is calling for hearings into the local justice system after a grand jury’s decision not to indict a 62-year-old retiree who shot and killed two illegal immigrants who were apparently breaking into a neighbor’s home. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee said at a news conference that…

Jul 7, 2008 11:57 AM CDT

Defense Wants Deadlocked Fen-Phen Jurors to Continue Deliberations

Jurors still weighing the evidence against two lawyers accused of defrauding their clients out of $65 million in a fen-phen settlement aren’t making any headway. But the defense is hoping they will continue deliberations. Today the jurors said they were deadlocked, but Senior U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman told them…

Jul 2, 2008 4:32 PM CDT

Mock Jurors in Fieger Case Reflected Bush Credibility Crisis, Lawyer Says

Mock jurors hearing evidence in a case against Michigan lawyer Geoffrey Fieger overwhelmingly expressed a distrust of government, an attitude probably held by jurors in the real trial, says one defense lawyer. Lawyer Steve Fishman, who represented co-defendant Ven Johnson, told the Detroit Free Press he became sure he would…

Jun 27, 2008 2:07 PM CDT

Why the Chief Defense Lawyer Didn’t Seek a Mistrial in the R. Kelly Case

Defense lawyer Edward Genson was so confident that the trial of his client R. Kelly was going well that he decided not to ask for a mistrial when prosecutors disclosed they gave the jurors wrong information. The gamble paid off, the National Law Journal reports. Earlier this month the rhythm…

Jun 18, 2008 3:43 PM CDT

Activists Spurring Grand Jury Probes More Successful Fighting Porn than Abortion

For months, a Kansas grand jury, impaneled by citizen petition, has been investigating whether an abortion provider performed illegal late-term abortions. So far, anti-abortion activists in the state have not succeeded in getting an indictment through use of an 1887 law that permits citizens there to call a grand jury…

Jun 17, 2008 1:25 PM CDT

Judge Warns Lawyers in Fen-Phen Fraud Case to Stay Away from Jurors

The Kentucky judge overseeing the trial of three fen-phen lawyers accused of defrauding their clients told other attorneys and witnesses in the case yesterday to stay away from jurors. U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman issued the warning after jurors said they thought some parties in the case were following them…

Jun 11, 2008 1:10 PM CDT

Sudoku-Playing Jurors Scuttle Australian Drug Trial in 66th Day

An Australian judge was notified about a curious habit of some jurors hearing a drug conspiracy trial. They were thought to be taking notes, but for some reason they were writing vertically rather than horizontally. The jurors, it turned out, were playing Sudoku, the Associated Press reports. The jury foreman…

Jun 10, 2008 3:02 PM CDT

Jurors Discounted Star Witness, But Convicted Rezko on Other Evidence

Attorney Stuart Levine was the star witness in the federal political corruption trial of Antoin “Tony” Rezko. But jurors reportedly discounted the testimony of a man portrayed by defense lawyers as a con artist and by himself as someone who for a time lived life in the fast lane. However,…

Jun 5, 2008 5:05 PM CDT

Billionaire Waits at Courthouse for Possible Broadcom Indictment

Ordinarily, when a major corporate figure is about to be indicted, prosecutors notify his lawyers so he can turn himself in rather than be arrested and paraded past media photographers in a “perp walk.” But the relationship between federal prosecutors and lawyers for billionaire Henry Nicholas III, the former CEO…

Jun 4, 2008 5:24 PM CDT

Fed’l Judge Voids Jury Convictions in Islamic Charity ‘Jihad’ Case

A federal judge in Boston today threw out most of the January tax-related jury convictions against defendants who were officers of a now-defunct charity accused of promoting jihad and supporting Islamic militants abroad. Calling the evidence against them “thin,” District Judge Dennis Saylor IV acquitted Samir Al-Monla and Emadeddin Muntasser…

Jun 4, 2008 12:06 AM CDT

Swayed by Defendant’s Testimony, Jurors Puzzle Lawyers With Verdict

Demetrius Carey was charged as a triggerman, at age 14, in an alleged robbery-gone-bad that resulted in the death of a 56-year-old South Florida woman on her front steps as she was returning from the grocery store. But the now-16-year-old defendant apparently may have saved himself from a potential life…

May 29, 2008 9:12 PM CDT