Juror Who Made Facebook Post To Pay Fine, Write Essay
A Detroit-area woman who was removed from a jury for commenting about the case on Facebook has been ordered to pay $250 and write an essay about the constitutional right to a fair trial.
Hadley Jons of Warren told a judge on Thursday that she's "very sorry.''
The 20-year-old Jons was a juror in a Macomb County case of resisting arrest. On Aug. 11, she wrote on Facebook that it was "gonna be fun to tell the defendant they're GUILTY.'' The trial wasn't over.
WJ and Fox-2 legal analyst Charlie Langton said Jons clearly should have known better.
"You know, you don't know who's following you. You just don't know where what you say-- where it will end up. You've got to be careful what you say, number one," Langton said.
"Every juror takes an oath of office not to talk about the case before it's done - -and, today, talk means texting, Tweeting or Facebooking. And, if you do, that subjects you to contempt of court... the judge made the right decision," he said.
The post was discovered by the defense team. Judge Diane Druzinski removed Jons from the jury the next day when trial resumed.
Druzinski told Jons that she violated her oath to be fair and impartial. The five-page essay is due Oct. 1.
(Copyright 2010 WWJ Radio. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
