Opinion ID: 198984
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Juror 58's Previous Service in an Unrelated Trial

Text: 68 Rios-Rios also argues that Juror 58's previous service in an unrelated trial involving government witness Ibanez-Maldonado resulted in bias. We see no merit in this argument. During Ibanez-Maldonado's testimony, Juror 58 informed the trial judge of his service in a previous trial that ended in an acquittal of Ibanez-Maldonado. The judge then conducted voir dire outside the presence of the jury. Juror 58 stated that he could serve impartially in this case and, although he had mentioned his prior service to his fellow jurors, he had not discussed the details of the case. Upon further inquiry, the court determined that the prior case involved a drug charge unrelated to the Santiago-Lugo organization. Exercising an abundance of caution, the trial judge queried the defense; defense counsel informed the court that they did not want Juror 58 dismissed. The judge recalled the jurors and instructed them that Juror 58 had served in a previous case in which Ibanez-Maldonado was accused, but that Juror 58 could participate in the present case. The judge emphasized that Juror 58 should not discuss the previous case with the jurors and that Juror 58 had to disregard the previous case in considering the present one. 69 We conclude that the trial judge's careful voir dire of Juror 58 was sufficient to assess his impartiality and the potential taint of the entire panel. Further, the judge carefully instructed the jury to disregard the juror's prior service. As we have previously held, the trial judge is vested with the discretion to fashion an appropriate and responsible procedure to determine whether misconduct actually occurred and whether it was prejudicial. United States v. Ortiz-Arrigoita, 996 F.2d 436, 443 (1st Cir. 1993); see also Boylan, 898 F.2d at 258. Therefore, appellant's claim of bias fails. 70