Opinion ID: 757051
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Judith Dallinger

Text: 129 Hall claims that Judith Dallinger should have been struck for cause because she had been exposed to pretrial publicity regarding the murder and indicated on her juror questionnaire form that she had developed an opinion that the defendant and his associates committed the crime. During voir dire, Dallinger exhibited some equivocation regarding her ability to completely set aside the pretrial media coverage of the murder to which she had been exposed. However, when questioned by the court, Dallinger indicated that, while she was not certain that she could completely forget what she had heard in the media about the crime, she could prevent that exposure from playing a role in her decision-making process. She further agreed absolutely that the media could be unreliable and that a verdict must be based solely upon the evidence at the trial. She further indicated that a year had passed since she had seen media coverage of the murder and that she could not remember the specifics of the crime or the names of the alleged perpetrators. Based upon the entire record, the district court drew the following conclusions regarding Dallinger's fitness as a juror in response to Hall's challenge for cause: 130 I overrule the objection, and I want to tell you mainly why. I'm convinced that when she told me that she saw that as her job to put [her prior exposure to media coverage and her opinions] out of her mind for the purpose of making a decision, she saw that as her job and she would do it, I think that was the truest expression. And I do think that given enough questioning any one of us would--could be led to doubt that. 131 I've got to make up my mind based on conflicting answers and use my own credibility assessments. Some I haven't felt this way about. This one I do. I think she would follow the law, and I think she would be able to disconnect herself from what she may have heard or seen about the case outside the courtroom. She said as much, and I believe her. 132 A person is not automatically rendered unqualified to serve as a juror merely because he has been exposed to media coverage of the charged crime. The issue becomes whether exposure to media publicity will preclude the individual from returning a verdict based solely on the person's application of the law as stated to the evidence presented. Bell v. Lynaugh, 828 F.2d 1085, 1093 (5th Cir.1987); see also Flores, 63 F.3d at 1357. We decline to second-guess the district court's determination, made after a face-to-face credibility assessment and thorough questioning, that Dallinger could faithfully follow the court's instructions and reach a verdict based solely upon the evidence presented at trial. See Bell, 828 F.2d at 1093 (holding that the trial court properly declined to strike a venireperson for cause where, [w]hen asked whether [a] newspaper article [discussing the crime at issue in the trial] had influenced her, she stated 'I guess he is more guilty, if I have to choose [between guilty and not guilty,]' and 'I felt like he was guilty by the paper,'  but responded negatively when asked by defense counsel,  'Do you believe that based on what you have heard, or at least the impression that's left of what you have heard, which is natural, that that would, or could, affect some of your deliberations over issues of fact?'  (alterations in original)). 133