United States v. Thomas - 116 F.3d 606 (2d Cir. 1997)

Rule:

A court must not remove a juror for an alleged refusal to follow the law as instructed unless the record leaves no doubt that the juror was in fact engaged in deliberate misconduct and that he was not simply unpersuaded by the government's case against a defendant.

Facts:

Ten defendants were charged with conspiracy to possess and distribute cocaine and crack cocaine, and actual possession and distribution of the substances. A superseding indictment added forfeiture counts against defendants. After a government witness made prejudicial statements on the stand, a mistrial was declared. A second trial of the same defendants began two days later and the jury returned verdicts of guilty for all defendants, who were thus convicted of related conduct involving violations of federal narcotics laws. On appeal, defendants argued that the trial court abused its discretion when it ordered the dismissal of one of the jurors during the course of jury deliberations. The trial court based its decision to remove the juror, in large part, on a finding that the juror was purposefully disregarding the court's instructions on the law. 

Issue:

Did the trial court abuse its discretion when it ordered the dismissal of one of the jurors during the course of jury deliberations? 

Answer:

Yes.

Conclusion:

The appellate court vacated the judgments and remanded for a new trial, finding that the trial court erred in dismissing the juror under Fed. R. Crim. P. 23(b) because the juror may have been following the court's instructions, but was unpersuaded by prosecution's case. Evidence revealed the juror's view on the merits of the case may have been motivated by doubts about defendants' guilt.