Opinion ID: 1199597
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 17

Heading: Concealed bias; alleged encounter with Uncle Frank

Text: Gholston's 1994 declaration stated that she was reluctant to serve on the jury, but that one day during jury selection, the spirit of her deceased Uncle Frank settle[d] on [her], and she heard from him that she should serve on the jury to avenge [petitioner's] crimes, after which she prayed to serve. The 1994 declaration further averred that the spirit of Gholston's uncle remained with her throughout the trial and assured her that giving petitioner the death penalty was the correct way to atone for the uncle's crimes of bank robbery and murder. In her 1996 declaration, and at the reference hearing, Gholston disclaimed this description of her experience with Uncle Frank as inaccurate and misleading. Gholston insisted she had no literal communication with her deceased uncle, but only felt his spirit as a calming influence that helped her realize she had no legitimate reasons to avoid jury duty. Gholston denied her Uncle Frank urged or influenced her to avenge petitioner's crimes or to sentence petitioner to death. At the reference hearing, CAP investigator Nerad insisted the 1994 declaration accurately conveyed what Gholston had said during her interview. On the other hand, Nerad acknowledged that Gholston had difficulty describing the experience because it was personal and difficult to express. The referee found Gholston had experienced no direct encounter with her Uncle Frank's spirit. In the referee's view, the fact that Gholston felt the uncle's presence, and was thereby reassured to serve and to render her verdicts, did not cause her to prejudge the case. If sound, the referee's findings establish that Gholston's contemplation of her deceased uncle was not a pretrial event, perception, conversation, or opinion bearing on her ability to be fair as a juror in petitioner's case. In that circumstance, Gholston had no obligation to disclose this matter in response to voir dire questioning, and her failure to do so did not result in the seating of a biased juror. We conclude the referee's findings on this subject are well founded. As noted above, the referee did not resolve the sharp dispute between witnesses Gholston and Nerad about whether Gholston reviewed and approved each statement finally contained in Gholston's 1994 declaration, including those pertaining to Uncle Frank. Even so, the referee, having observed Gholston on the witness stand, determined that the 1994 declaration's extreme statements on this subject do not accurately convey the experience Gholston was trying to describe. For multiple reasons, we agree. Gholston has maintained at all relevant times that the 1994 declaration far overstated what she meant to tell the CAP investigators about her deceased uncle. Other circumstances buttress her claim. The incident was highly subjective and inherently difficult to recount; as Nerad herself acknowledged, Gholston had difficulty putting it into precise words. Both Gholston and Nerad agreed the CAP investigators did not record the original interview in which the Uncle Frank matter came to light. Nerad confirmed that the initial written draft of this experience was composed solely from the investigators' memory. Particularly where nuance was critical, this procedure exacerbated the chance of error. Nerad insisted Gholston later had a full opportunity to review and amend the initial draft. But that does not prove the 1994 declaration accurately recorded the Uncle Frank experience. As noted above, this experience was difficult to state clearly. Moreover, the conditions under which the declaration was prepared and executed must have been stressful and intimidating. Gholston, then 76 years old, found herself under sudden examination by trained investigators, more than 11 years after the fact, about her possible misconduct on a capital jury. Gholston described the investigators as sociable and ingratiating, but the evidence indicates she was uncertain about whom they represented and unclear about the consequences of any information she gave. [22] Under such distracting circumstances, any approval Gholston gave to the final draft is no guarantee of its literal accuracy. Two other jurors testified that although they reviewed their similar declarations before signing them, they overlooked or misunderstood passages they later found inaccurate. Finally, the CAP investigators had an interest in giving Gholston's imprecise description of the Uncle Frank episode its most extreme interpretation. There is evidence both Gholston and other jurors felt misled by the interviewing techniques the investigators employed. Other jurors also testified, on reflection, that the investigators had drafted their declarations in slanted and exaggerated ways. [23] Under all these circumstances, the evidence provides no convincing reason to credit Gholston's 1994 declaration, so lurid as to raise doubts on its face, over her subsequent and more reasonable disclaimers both in writing and on the witness stand. Like the referee, we accept Gholston's assurance that the 1994 declaration does not accurately set forth the Uncle Frank episode, and that the true experience is one which could have no bearing on her fairness as a juror. Accordingly, no basis for relief on habeas corpus has been established.