Opinion ID: 1254168
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Misconduct Allegations.

Text: Appellant's new trial motion alleged that news accounts during the trial frequently referred to appellant's prior history and in particular to his acquittals in two prior murder trials and to his incarceration at Leavenworth federal penitentiary. Appellant also asserted in the motion that, during interviews with defense counsel and his investigator, Juror Nancy Wynn had admitted reading such news accounts and learning from them about appellant's criminal record, had stated that she became aware from statements they made that Juror Norlene Hawley was aware that appellant had murdered before and had met Jim Johnson at Leavenworth, and had said that other jurors also knew about appellant's criminal history. He also asserted that Wynn had stated that eventual Jury Foreman Harvey Solomon had made statements indicating violation of the court order that jurors not discuss the case with persons outside the court proceedings, and had made statements which indicated that he had formed an opinion as to guilt before all of the evidence had been presented. The motion for new trial was supported by written statements from defense counsel and the investigator, neither of which was executed under penalty of perjury. Jon C. Minsloff stated: On February 25, 1985, after a mistrial had been declared, Investigator Kevin Love interviewed Wynn. The information she disclosed led to a second interview by Minsloff and Love on March 5, 1985, at which time Wynn stated that she had read news stories in the Santa Cruz Sentinel during the trial, as It was too tempting not to want to read about the case. As a result she was familiar with appellant's prior criminal record, including his two previous trials for murder. It was apparent to Wynn that Hawley was reading the same articles because of the timing of the articles and Hawley's comment during guilt phase deliberations that appellant met Johnson at Leavenworth, that appellant had done it twice before and [t]his isn't the first time he's done it. Wynn believed that most jurors had been reading newspaper accounts of the trial during the trial. Wynn always saw Juror Ed Wagner carrying a copy of the San Jose Mercury during the trial and his comments during deliberations made her sure he was reading about the case. Both Wagner and Juror Clarence Hedrick stated during the penalty phase that We've got to stop him now. We can't let him get away with it again. Foreman Solomon had acquired the nickname Hang `em High Harvey from fellow teachers at school as a result of discussions about the case (on Fridays when the court was not in session). Minsloff also stated that he met with Madeleine Boriss (the deputy district attorney who prosecuted the Santa Cruz County proceedings) on September 12, 1985, and advised her of this information. Boriss told Minsloff that she had also interviewed Wynn and Wynn had related the same information about jury misconduct to Boriss. On September 17, 1985, Minsloff gave all of the information to District Attorney Arthur Danner III in a meeting at Danner's office. In October 1985, Deputy District Attorney Jon E. Hopkins (who prosecuted the Stanislaus County proceedings) and Investigator Dennis Clark met with Wynn in her home. On October 31, 1985, when Minsloff and Love again met with Wynn, Wynn said that under no circumstances would she submit an affidavit regarding the matters she had discussed. Investigator Love stated that when he interviewed Wynn on February 21, 1985, Wynn said that on February 15, 1985, Deputy District Attorney Boriss had told her that Love would probably try to get her to sign an affidavit. When asked why Boriss thought that would happen, Wynn told Love that it was because of the conduct of the jury during the trial and Wynn believed several jurors had read newspaper accounts during the trial. Love described the March 5, 1985, and October 31, 1985, interviews with Wynn, much as Minsloff did. His statement asserted that Boriss and Deputy District Attorney Joyce E. Angell had been present during the September 17, 1985, meeting with District Attorney Danner, and that Boriss had said during the meeting that Wynn had admitted to Boriss that Wynn read newspaper articles about the case during the trial. The People submitted affidavits by Juror Ida C. Murray that she avoided all publicity during the trial and never saw or heard anyone refer to publicity about the case or mention any matter about appellant that was not presented in the courtroom. She was present when, after the trial, information about appellant's prior difficulties with the law in Oregon and Minnesota, information that had not been presented at trial, was revealed to the jurors. She had not heard these matters discussed by any juror during the pendency of the case and the other jurors who were present when it was revealed expressed surprise. Foreman Solomon was never referred to by other jurors as Hang `em High Harvey. Juror Wynn never made any statement in or out of the courtroom indicating any knowledge of the case or appellant's background not presented in court and because Wynn spent courtroom breaks by herself, Wynn would not have been as able to comment on extra-deliberation conversation as well as Murray. A declaration by Assistant District Attorney Hopkins stated that in a September 26, 1985, interview with Juror Wynn at which Investigator Clark was present, Wynn stated that she had not read any articles regarding appellant during the trial. She assumed that other jurors had done so because they all stuck together and the men were all so `macho.' Juror Bonnie Brofft stated in her declaration that she never heard any juror in or out of court during the trial or during jury deliberations make any reference to publicity or to any information about the case not presented at trial. Jurors commented almost daily that they felt out of touch from not reading newspapers or watching TV news. She never heard the term Hang `em High Harvey used during the pendency of the trial. The trial court denied the new trial motion, ruling that the evidence offered to establish misconduct was inadmissible hearsay.