JODI ARIAS legal team demands mistrial because of juror “misconduct.”
Arias’ lead attorney, Kirk Nurmi, asked that a female juror be removed claiming that: “statements Juror 5 made in front of her fellow jurors amounts to misconduct that inserted partiality in what is supposed to be an impartial body.”
The request came in the wake of Thursday’s hearing in which Arias’ Nurmi alleged that prosecutor Juan Martinez may have been viewed by jurors when he was posing for photographs and signing autographs for his fans outside the Maricopa County Courthouse in downtown Phoenix, reported the Arizona Republic.
In response, Judge Sherry Stephens ordered that all of the jurors be questioned one-by-one, leading to the controversial comments by number 5 and causing Nurmi to claim she is neither fair nor impartial at this point – making “her removal from the jury essential” to ensure Arias’ rights.
Specific details about what happened remain unknown because the information is sealed, RadarOnline reported.
Currently there are 18 jurors sitting in on the proceedings which began on January 2, but only 12 will deliberate once the defense and prosecution give their closing arguments.
