mistrial news stories on Newser

Clemens Judge Declares Mistrial

John Johnson — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 11:37:39 CDT

A big swing and a miss for prosecutors: The judge in the Roger Clemens perjury trial declared a mistrial today—on only the second day. Prosecutors showed evidence to the jury that the judge had earlier deemed inadmissible, reports the Los Angeles Times . "I don't see how I unring the...

Juror Faces Jail for Friending Defendant

Rob Quinn — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 02:56:00 CDT

A British juror who took empathy for the defendant a little too far may be going to jail for contempt of court. Joanna Fraill used Facebook to find and befriend a woman she had helped acquit on drug charges. Before the jury had reached a verdict on other defendants, the...

Mistrial Declared in Blackwater Murder Case

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 12:00:00 CDT

A federal judge has declared a mistral in the case of two former Blackwater contractors accused of murdering two unarmed Afghan civilians and wounding a third man in Kabul. The jury came up deadlocked after several days of deliberations. A new trial date was set for March 1.

Jury: Lone Juror Wouldn't Convict Blago

Kevin Spak — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 09:21:57 CDT

The jury in the Rod Blagojevich trial came exceedingly close to convicting him on a host of charges, but were held back by a lone, intractable holdout, jurors told the press today. “The person just did not see the evidence that everyone else did,” Juror Stephen Wlodek told the AP...

Gotti Dodges Conviction for 4th Time

Jane Yager — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 05:11:00 CST

Mob son John "Junior" Gotti has evaded conviction again, walking free yesterday after his fourth racketeering trial in five years ended in a fourth hung jury. Charges against Gotti, the son of the notorious Gambino crime family boss, included murder, kidnapping, robbery, extortion and drug dealing. "Why me? I am...

'Juror Leak' Sparks Travolta Mistrial

Rob Quinn — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:06:28 CDT

A Bahamian judge ordered a mistrial in the John Travolta extortion case yesterday after a loose-lipped juror apparently spread word that one of the two accused would be acquitted. The judge blamed juror misconduct after a local politician made a speech saying that a former senator—charged along with a...

Tweeting Juror Prompts Motion for New Trial

Harry Kimball — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 16:50:02 CDT

A defendant found liable for $12.6 million in an Arkansas civil matter asked for a new trial because one juror Tweeted about the case from the courtroom, the Springdale Morning News reports. “Juror Jonathan’s” Twitter entries included “Oh and nobody buy Stoam,” the foam/steel hybrid the defendant sold; and...

Britney Case Ends in Mistrial

Harry Kimball — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:12:27 CDT

Britney Spears’ misdemeanor driving-without-a-license prosecution ended in mistrial today, and lawyers for the people have no intention of trying her again, E! Online reports. After 5 votes, the jury remained deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquittal. The foreman said many jurors had their minds set early and thought the trial...

Jury Hears Secret Tapes in Stevens Trial

Peter Fearon — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 07:03:43 CDT

Jurors heard tapes yesterday of Ted Stevens cursing federal investigators and declaring his innocence in conversations he did not know were being recorded, reports the Anchorage Daily News . Stevens was speaking with former Veco CEO Bill Allen, the prosecution’s chief witness in the Alaska senator’s corruption trial. "I'm developing the...