Opinion ID: 1143673
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Failure to Dismiss Juror Joanna Baughn.

Text: The Murrays claim that the trial court committed plain error when it failed to dismiss Joanna Baughn from the jury because her father, Stumpy Baughn, owned the building in which the store the Murrays sublet to the Feights was located. In our view, Stumpy Baughn's financial interest in the outcome of this action is not obvious, contrary to the Murrays' position. The dispute here was between the Feights and the Murrays on the sublease. Whether the Feights paid their rent to the Murrays presumably has no impact on the Murrays' obligation to pay rent to Stumpy Baughn. Moreover, Ms. Baughn stated on voir dire that she had heard nothing about the case from her father. Contrary to the Murrays' assertion, this is hardly the kind of exposure to such incriminating or highly inflammatory material that requires automatic disqualification of a potential juror. Cf. Chase v. State, 678 P.2d 1347, 1352 (Alaska App. 1984) (addressing the effect of pretrial publicity on juror panel in a sexual assault case). The court's failure to dismiss juror Baughn was not plain error.