Convicted Politician Can’t Search Facebook-Posting Juror’s Phone

A Cincinnati city council member convicted of bribery and attempted extortion lost his bid to examine the electronic devices of a juror who posted about her jury service on Facebook, according to a Sixth Circuit decision issued Friday.

A court weighing a criminal defendant’s claims of improper juror influence lacks authority to force jurors to turn over personal electronic devices or divulge their passwords, the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held. A court can conduct hearings and question jurors in connection with claims of improper influence, “but it cannot search jurors’ personal devices and steamroll their Fourth ...