Media to Be Blocked Out of Seeing Graphic Videos in Homicide Prosecution of Minneapolis Police Officer
Much to the dismay of several Minnesota news organizations, Hennepin County Judge Kathryn Quaintance intends to restrict public access to videos of the dying shooting victim of ex-police officer Mohamed Noor. In announcing her intent to disclose the video only to the jurors, the judge stated, “I am trying to protect pictures of this woman naked and grasping for breath in her last moments of life.” The case has already received worldwide attention because the victim was a yoga teacher and meditation coach from Australia who called the police to report an assault outside of her Minneapolis residence. News outlets are vigorously arguing against the judge’s intended censorship.
Louisiana Supreme Court Halts Murder Trial and Orders Inquiry into Lack of Young Persons in Jury Pool
During jury selection in a case involving the killing of a police officer, the Louisiana high court ordered a stay of proceedings so that the trial judge could closely examine the defendant’s claim that none of the 566 potential jurors are younger than 26 years of age.
Denver Law Review Publishes Study on How to Uncover Post-Verdict Juror Bias
Readers will recall that in the case of Pena-Rodriguez v. Colorado, the U.S. Supreme Court for the first time authorized trial courts to consider posttrial evidence of juror bias during final deliberations. The author of “Uncovering Juror Racial Bias,” spells out how judges have had difficulty implementing Pena-Rodriguez post-verdict procedures and proposes a model for analyzing juror racial bias based on social science findings.
D.C. Circuit Panel Explains the Legal Limits of Disclosing Grand Jury Transcripts
In a case that may become legal precedent for any future battles about the disclosure of grand jury proceedings referred to in Independent Counsel Robert Mueller’s recently released final report, the D.C. Circuit inMcKeever v. Barr explains why a historian’s request for grand jury records dating back to the 1950s should be denied. The requester is trying to piece together what happened to Columbia University Professor Jesus de Galindez Suarez before he disappeared from New York City. The professor was a critic of former Dominican Republic dictator Rafael Trujillo.
Juror Sentenced to Eight Months in Prison for Doing Internet Research During a Long Jury Trial
During a complex four-month criminal jury trial, 65-year-old Malcolm Baughan repeatedly conducted Internet homework about the defendants—despite contrary admonitions by the judge. After the jury foreman reported this to the trial judge, the trial was aborted. In imposing sentence on Mr. Baughan, the judge cited the great cost to the witnesses and the New Zealand government. Baughan sheepishly accepted his sentence, confessing he is “a stupid old fool.”
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