California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Morales, D073578 (Cal. App. 2019):
6. Cleveland recounted the specific complaints of the foreperson, who explained that the juror in question " 'could not even agree that a crime had been committed. It was no fault, no foul, and we are having a hard time attempting to have this person even, quote, unquote, apply the law in the five steps where it is outlined in the document that you gave us to read where it goes to the five points of what is attempted robbery.' The foreperson stated that the juror 'doesn't feel that there is a valid charge. That he cannot in all fairness and conscience state that there was any evidence to support that the defendant allegedly came in and was attempting to get the weapon that allegedly was behind the counter underneath the cash register.' When asked whether the juror in question had made up his mind prior to deliberations and was refusing to discuss the case, the foreperson responded: 'I don't know if I could say that their [sic] mind was made up before we went into the room.' The foreperson explained that when other jurors asked this juror to discuss his position, the juror responded: 'You're not going to sway my mind, this is what I feel in conscience in looking at the big picture, no fault no foul, there's pushing and shoving on every football field, and the conversation goes from that point. [] Does not want to discuss the five points of the law as to attempted robbery . . . .' " (People v. Cleveland, supra, 25 Cal.4th at pp. 470-471.) The trial court individually questioned the jurors, who complained the juror was not deliberating, did not want to discuss the elements of the offense in the steps outlined in the instructions, would discuss issues "that had nothing to do with the facts at hand or the case," was "taking [an] unreasonable interpretation," contradicted what other jurors would say, and would not answer their questions. (Id. at pp. 470-473.) The trial court discharged the juror on the basis that he was not "functionally deliberating." (Id. at p. 473.)
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