Alternate jurors nichols trial

Prosecutors learned of the problem on March 9 but didn't notify the judge about it until March 12, one day after the jury was seated. Burnett was born in McAlester and has many relatives in the area.

It was not clear how prosecutors learned of the problem or why they didn't let the judge know of it earlier. Taylor said that if there are further problems with the jury and he runs out of alternates, he will dismiss the case.

The state trial for Nichols, who already is serving a life sentence on federal changes, is expected to last four to six months. Prosecutors have lined up more than witnesses to testify against Nichols, who is charged in Oklahoma with counts of first-degree murder.

Nichols, 48, was already convicted for the deaths of eight federal law enforcement officers in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, which killed people. Prosecutors allege that Nichols helped McVeigh plan and execute the April 19, , bombing. Ahead, check out the best ways to legally get out of jury duty. A medical condition could work for getting out of jury duty.

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Why do lawyers challenge jurors? How do lawyers pick jurors? Is jury nullification legal in Canada? What does it mean when a case is nullified? What is beyond the reasonable doubt? What happens to alternate jurors during deliberation? The alternate jurors shall be seated so as to have equal power and facilities for seeing and hearing the proceedings in the case , and shall take the same oath as the jurors already selected, and shall, unless excused by the court, attend at all times upon the trial of the cause in company with the other jurors, but … How many alternate jurors were there in the OJ Simpson trial?

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A fourth juror was excused last month after he had a heart attack. But the defense urged jurors to consider all sentencing options in the case, including life in prison. Nichols is serving life in prison on federal charges for the deaths of eight federal agents in the April 19, bombing, which killed people. Oklahoma prosecutors brought the state murder charges for the other people who died and one fetus whose mother was killed in the explosion.

During opening statements, attorney Creekmore Wallace said the defense will give jurors a glimpse of Nichols' life before and after the bombing, including his relationships with his two former wives, his three children and his large extended family in Michigan. He said Nichols has never been a discipline problem in prison and has formed relationships with members of bombing victims' families as a prayer partner. Prosecutor Sandra Elliott said Nichols deserves to die by lethal injection.

Within half an hour, the jury came back with a question for the judge. The alternates were sitting in on all of the court proceedings over the last two weeks as prosecutors have tried to convince the jury that Brown, a Democrat who represented the Florida district that included Jacksonville from to , funneled money from an unregistered Virginia charity into her personal accounts.

She has pleaded not guilty, blaming her former chief of staff Ronnie Simmons for stealing the money. There were no indications the jury had reached verdicts on any of the 22 charges against Brown, but that process will start over, regardless of any decisions they had made. Before the complaints were raised Tuesday night, sparking the changes Wednesday, the jurors, looking visibly weary, told the judge just before 5 p.

Tuesday that after a full day of deliberations, they wanted to adjourn for the day and resume their work Wednesday morning. The judge again urged them not to speak about the case with anyone and told them to be back in court at a. At least two of the jurors appeared noticeably frustrated at that time.

The original jurors, who included eight white jurors, three black jurors and one Hispanic juror, spent nearly four hours behind closed doors Monday before being dismissed for the night and returning Tuesday morning to begin deliberations just before 9 a.

Six members of the jury were spotted during a break Tuesday by a court observer, who said they appeared "relaxed and chatty," were cracking jokes among themselves and did not look stressed.

The jury could find Brown guilty on any or all of the charges, but each verdict must be unanimous or a mistrial will be declared on that charge, which could lead to a retrial.

The last 12 days have been anything but peaceful for the year-old former representative, who has been on trial facing 22 federal charges, including participating in a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, mail and wire fraud, concealing material facts, obstruction of IRS laws and filing false tax returns.