Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog
Not the lawyers — the jurors.
I've posted several articles, and the web is rife with articles, posts, and case decisions about how jurors are using technology in the jury room: twittering, contacting the media, and now this interesting piece by Prof Colin Miller. An Analog Rule in a Digital World?: Court of Appeals of Indiana Precludes Jury Impeachment Based Upon Text Message Found in Defendant's Cell Phone, 7 April 2009.
The issue: What should be done when a juror comes forward after trial
and claims that jurors retrieved incriminating text messages from a
cell phone that was admitted into evidence, but without either party or
the court knowing that the messages existed. According to the Court of
Appeals of Indiana, the answer was "nothing." And according to me, that
answer was wrong.
and claims that jurors retrieved incriminating text messages from a
cell phone that was admitted into evidence, but without either party or
the court knowing that the messages existed. According to the Court of
Appeals of Indiana, the answer was "nothing." And according to me, that
answer was wrong.