Scott Peterson could face the death penalty if convicted of killing his wife and unborn son
Posted on 11/10/2004 5:35:09 AM PST by runningbear
Judge removes juror from Scott Peterson's murder trial
Scott Peterson could face the death penalty if convicted of killing his wife and unborn son
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. — Jurors who have been weighing capital murder charges against Scott Peterson for five days were ordered Tuesday afternoon to start from scratch after a panelist was removed from the jury and replaced with an alternate.
Judge Alfred Delucchi did not give a specific reason for the removal of the woman, Juror 7, but indicated in his instructions to the remaining jurors that the dismissed juror may have violated court rules by trying to investigate the case on her own.
"You must decide all questions of fact in this case from the evidence received in this trial and not from any other source," the judge added after reading jurors the standard, state-approved jury instructions given to deliberating jurors when one of their number is dismissed.
The extra sentence is part of the an official instruction entitled "Juror Forbidden To Make Any Independent Investigation." While that instruction is delivered to all juries before they begin deliberating, it is not normally read again when a panelist is dismissed.
Story continues ..........
7:02 p.m. PT
A 14-foot aluminum Gamefisher boat identical to Scott Peterson's sits in a corner parking lot a block and a half away from the courthouse. Four homemade anchors and a headless dummy dressed in blue overalls and tied up in duct tape rest in the bed of the boat. It is the boat the defense used in a video reenactment designed to show the boat would have capsized if Peterson tried to dump his wife over the side. The judge ruled it inadmissible and jurors never saw it, but here it is — in the midst of deliberations — for anyone to see. There are two camera crews. Now three. Now four. Now five.... —Harriet Ryan
3:55 p.m.: Deliberations end for the day.
The courtroom is closed. Jurors finish deliberations for the day. The California air seems to be working wonders on some jurors. Jurors No. 9 and No. 11 emerge separately, smiling. The rest look serious but not as haggard as they appeared in court. Maybe the fresh air perked them up a bit. The panel heads back to their hotel. —Harriet Ryan & Beth Karas
3:35 p.m.
As I sit behind the courthouse chatting with reporters, I spot Ron Grantski rolling by in an SUV. He rolls down the window and shouts hello to an officer. "Whatcha doing?" he is asked. In response, Grantski forms a cup with his hand and tilts it back to his mouth. No doubt he is going out for a soda. Interestingly enough, Grantski has been spending time with Redwood City's finest while awaiting a verdict. Yesterday, he went out on a ride-along with a San Mateo County Sheriff's Deputy on the lookout for criminals around the county. Grantski did not get to carry a badge and had .......
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Peterson Juror No. 7 Dismissed, Replaced
Nov. 9 (AP) — A juror in Scott Peterson's murder trial who apparently did her own research on the case was replaced with an alternate Tuesday, and the judge ordered the panel to "start all over again" with their deliberations........
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Nov. 9 — BOOTED JUROR
Late this morning, reporters heard there was some sort of jury misconduct. Rumors started flying. Speculation was rampant. Sources close to the trial say juror #7 had done some or her own research about this case on the Internet, but we didn't know how serious it was.
Legal analysts say the judge could do everything from issue a warning, dismiss a juror, or even declare a mistrial. The reporters knew it was serious because Scott Peterson's family and a couple of Laci Peterson's relatives arrived at the courthouse. This was the first time we had seen them since closing arguments. Scott Peterson also made an appearance in the courtroom. He gave his mother a bigger-than-usual smile when he walked into the courtroom. I saw Jackie Peterson wave to her son, a bit unusual. .......
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Juror excused from Peterson trial after apparently doing research
A juror in Scott Peterson's double-murder trial was abruptly excused from her duties today after doing her own research and was replaced by an alternate.
Judge Alfred Delucchi then admonished the new jury to begin deliberating over again.
Delucchi did not say why he excused juror No. 7, Frances Gorman of Foster City, a retired Pacific Gas and Electric Co. worker, but sources say she broke the rules when she conducted her own research in the case instead of relying solely on the evidence presented in court. It was .......
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Juror removal in Peterson case OK, but is jury tainted?
The judge presiding over the Scott Peterson murder case was within the law to remove a juror for considering evidence that wasn't presented at trial, but it's possible the ousted juror has already illegally influenced others on the panel, creating grounds for appeal, legal experts said Tuesday.
Judge Alfred A. Delucchi ordered the panel to "start all over again" with their deliberations after he replaced Juror No. 7 with one of five remaining alternates who sat in the jury box during the trial and have been sequestered separately during deliberations........
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Peterson Judge Dismisses Juror for Misconduct
By CAROLYN MARSHALL
Published: November 10, 2004
he judge presiding over the Scott Peterson murder trial dismissed a juror for misconduct Tuesday and then ordered the panel to start deliberations from scratch, as required by law.
In dismissing juror No. 7, the judge, Alfred A. Delucchi, forbid her from talking about the case. The juror, who is 50 to 60 years old, said during jury selection that she worked for a utility company.
The judge did not disclose any details of the misconduct, and the decision to dismiss the juror was made in closed chambers. But legal experts said they suspected she might have conducted her own research, which could .......
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Juror dismissed -- did own research
With alternate replacing her, jury must start again
Jurors started deliberating anew Tuesday in Scott Peterson's double-murder trial, after a panel member was abruptly removed for doing her own research on the case.
Frances Gorman, a retired Pacific Gas and Electric Co. employee and formerly juror No. 7, was replaced after the noon recess by an alternate -- a mother with flaming pink hair and tattoos who works ......
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Deliberations restart after juror booted
PANELIST REMOVED FOR CONDUCTING OWN RESEARCH; ALTERNATE STEPS IN
By Julia Prodis Sulek and Jessie Seyfer
Mercury News
Five days into deliberations, a woman who had called herself ``a crusader'' was kicked off the jury deciding Scott Peterson's fate Tuesday for doing her own research into the double-murder case. The judge told the panel to restart deliberations from scratch with an alternate juror -- a young mother who has broken down in tears at several emotional moments during the trial.
The jury shake-up sent legal pundits into a frenzy of speculation about the impact the new juror -- a woman with nine tattoos, four sons and dyed fuchsia hair -- will have on the trial that has become a public sensation.
``Normally, the prosecution .........
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Pinging...... yesterday's details.....for today's freeper talk/lurking....
Pinging...... yesterday's details.....for today's freeper talk/lurking....
Pinging...... yesterday's details.....for today's freeper talk/lurking....
This would be good news for the prosecution, I think.
November 10, 2004 -- A renegade retiree on the Scott Peterson jury was allegedly caught doing her own Web research into the case and suddenly got booted from the panel yesterday — the latest stunning setback in the sensational trial.
The shocking move came just hours after prosecutors and defense lawyers huddled behind closed doors with Judge Alfred Delucchi over Frances Gorman, a k a "Juror No. 7" — a 55-year-old Asian grandma who used to work as an auditor for a utility company.
Yes, more to come.... Hopefully a shorter time to come to a verdict/decision.
I think... I think media is hyping and misjudging info and most of the public who listens to it is buying it.... Thank goodness for the internet to weed out stuff.
<"DUMMY
A strange and very unusual sight just a couple blocks from the courthouse. At four this afternoon, we spotted someone dropping-off a fishing boat in a small parking lot. It was a 'Gamefisher' boat, an exact replica of Scott Peterson's fishing boat. Lying inside the boat was a dummy body. Wires were sticking out from its hands and feet. Also in the boat were 4 concrete anchors. We heard the defense has done its own demonstration video to show that it would have been nearly impossible for Scott Peterson to dump his wife's body off a fishing boat. But is this THE demonstration boat?
The boat is sitting in a parking lot, next to an office building, reportedly now owned by Mark Geragos. Geragos did not return any calls to confirm if this was his demonstration boat. It's strange that he would park the boat right there. It was very visible. It wasn't hard to spot. A lot of people started dropping-by to take a look. Another mystery ">
LOL....yes... just look at the Kerry/Michael Moore/Moveon.org...etc..... yep, they are so socialists.... ;o)
I don't post much, but I have been following this thread from the beginning and I want to commend you, runningbear for faithfully posting it every day.
I have a question, if anyone out there is familiar with California law. Regarding the dismissal of juror #7, my brother is telling me that Nancy Grace said that they had to have Scotty's approval before they could dismiss her. Any truth to that? Does anybody know?
In some states that must be true..I don't think it was NG but a defense lawyer from the east coast who said it.
So, even if the juror breaks the rules, they can't dismiss him/her unless the defendant approves?
No, no..I think removal instead of a mistrial must be the result...I am using common sense..not legal expertise.
It should be noted too, they could be subject to persecution too!
I agree. I'm only asking because my brother is telling me that they had to have permission from SP to get rid of juror #7 and now I'm wondering why they got rid of her.
It isn't up to the defendent to say who can stay on or not. It is the judge, defense, and prosecuters of the case because of possible appllete issues, and mistrial ...
One of the Court TV panelists explained that in New York the judge would have to get approval from the defense in order to replace a juror. If no approval it's a mistrial. Laws are different for California.
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