Juror B37. Holy Smokes

[meow2u3]

Did you see or hear that interview with her on CNN? Seems very clear that she makes no effort to be informed about the world at all, and that she carries around a set of racial assumptions, let us say, and is utterly and totally unconscious about them. She thinks Zimmerman's--get this--"heart was in the right place." She thinks this would have gone down the same way no matter what color anybody was. Including, as she put it, "Spanish." Spanish?

What's more incredible than her proud ignorance is that the prosecution didn't strike her in the first place, as Dahlia Lithwick wrote in Slate. She kept bragging--bragging--that she doesn't pay any attention to the world. That she worries about her life and that's it. That she doesn't trust the media, which no one does, but she doesn't even read a thing, not one thing. That "you never get all the information." That last point should have been the clincher. Lithwick:

Gail Brashers-Krug, a former federal prosecutor and law professor, is currently a criminal defense attorney in Iowa. She also jumped back when B37 said, ”You never get all the information.“ “That's exactly what a defense attorney loves to hear,” says Brashers-Krug. “That's reasonable doubt, right there. If I were a prosecutor, that would make me extremely nervous about her.” She adds that B37’s devotion to animals might raise flags for her as well. “The animal thing is weird. She doesn't know how many animals she has, and she mentions her animals far, far more than her two daughters. She strikes me as eccentric and unpredictable. I never, ever want eccentric, unpredictable people on a jury.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/07/16/juror-b37-holy-smokes.html

B37's voir dire at this link:
http://gawker.com/george-zimmerman-juror-b37-hates-media-called-trayvon-787873533

If this isn't a mistrial because of an open-and-shut case of jury misconduct, then what is?

Exhibit A: B37 apparently lied to get on the jury.
Exhibit B: She sounds like an animal hoarder.

Gail Brashers-Krug, a former federal prosecutor and law professor, is currently a criminal defense attorney in Iowa. She also jumped back when B37 said, ”You never get all the information.“ “That's exactly what a defense attorney loves to hear,” says Brashers-Krug. “That's reasonable doubt, right there. If I were a prosecutor, that would make me extremely nervous about her.” She adds that B37’s devotion to animals might raise flags for her as well. “The animal thing is weird. She doesn't know how many animals she has, and she mentions her animals far, far more than her two daughters. She strikes me as eccentric and unpredictable. I never, ever want eccentric, unpredictable people on a jury.”

I wouldn't want a lying bigot on the jury, BTA, IANAL.

[GeorgeGist]

1. The Fix was in.

[Lex]

2. Oblivious to her own racism, to her own white privilege.

The result of years of institutionalized, pervasive racism, to the point it is like the air they breathe. They don't think about it. They don't see it.

How will we ever make it go away?

[Whisp]

5. +++

It's like the air they breathe, they don't think about it.

[warrior1]

3. what is suspect

was what you just pointed out and that hours after the verdict she's got a book deal. Her husbands a lawyer. Is it possible that he knows the defense?

[Incitatus]

15. There is a rumor going around that he knows O'Mara.

It is hard to believe that a woman married to a lawyer doesn't read anything or pay attention to any news.

[TorchTheWitch]

4. there was definitely jury misconduct

In the interview she claims that Serino saying he believed Zimmerman's story was a big influence in her deciding he was not guilty, however, the judge admonished the jurors during the trial that they were to disregard that statement. She did not disregard it and even used it as a big reason as to why she thought Zimmerman was not guilty.

Further, she could not have mentioned this big reason of hers in using Serino's statement to the other jurors during deliberations as surely at LEAST one other juror would have noted or at least remembered that admonishment from the judge.

[marions ghost]

6. OK to address this point...that the prosecution could have struck her

"What's more incredible than her proud ignorance is that the prosecution didn't strike her in the first place," as Dahlia Lithwick wrote in Slate.

Do you think that in this town (pop 50,000) of heavy Fox watchers that the prosecution had every chance to strike her, especially for only 6 jurors rather than 12?

”You never get all the information.“ “That's exactly what a defense attorney loves to hear,” says Brashers-Krug. “That's reasonable doubt, right there." EXACTLY. And that's how they did it. And that's what often goes down in small towns especially.

I am sure that the prosecution did everything they could to eliminate ALL the B37's but it would be like playing whack-a-mole.

[K Gardner]

9. Sorry, this isn't funny, but I just guffawed at the mental image your last sentence conjured

up in my mind, of De La Rionda and John Guy trying to whack-a-mole all the ignorance on the potential jurors.

[kysrsoze]

13. It truly was a jury of the Zim's peers... and that's sad.

[marions ghost]

17. Seems so...

his peers only. Not right.

[Chiyo-chichi]

7. No question that the prosecution should have dismissed her.

She said she learned about the case from local news and, in the same breath, said it was the Today Show.

Then the "riot" business. Even if the prosecutors were willing to overlook the fact that she thought there were riots, she said the people who were protesting went too far.

Absent those rallies and protests, Zimmerman likely wouldn't have been charged. If I'm the prosecutor, I'm afraid that despite her protests that she doesn't pay much attention to the news, she already believes that Zimmerman shouldn't have been charged.

[Punkingal]

8. They tried to dismiss her.

The judge wouldn't let them.

[Chiyo-chichi]

11. I thought the state used peremptory strikes on 5 or so potential jurors

but two strikes were restored when the judge upheld the defense challenges.

And I thought neither of those was B37.

According to this, those jurors were E6 and B76: http://www.clickorlando.com/news/jury-seated-in-george-zimmerman-murder-trial/-/1637132/20648712/-/mg3494/-/index.html

[Punkingal]

18. They had dismissed two white women...

And O'Mara (asshole) told the judge they were dismissing white women for no reason and forced them to take the next two wowm. One of them was her.

[Little Star]

12. That's what I was wondering...

was she one of the 2 that the judge would not let the prosecution dismiss?

[NYC_SKP]

10. Having watched the voir dire, I'm convinced that she was coached by her lawyer husband.

Her answers are too conveniently fitting to what lawyers are looking for, designed to be selected.

Never talked about the case, never thought about the case, didn't hear anything about the case.

Too perfect, suspicious from the outset.

[kelliekat44]

14. I think it would be hard to find a non-lying bigot anywhere. nt

[Baitball Blogger]

16. Well, in her favor, she does have just the Orlando Sentinel to depend on for news.

They intentionally avoided articles that would have ferreted out government corruption during the nineties. Because of it at least one corrupt lawyer was able to remain in several high government positions where he has done a wonderful job of turning justice upside down by buying loyalties. It is time to recognize that Orlando is under the influence of a corrupt good ole boy system. They are proud of being a small town in a big city. You would have to be a fool not to understand what that means.

[Corruption Inc]

19. "she makes no effort to be informed about the world at all"

Neither does half of the American population.