NEW HAVEN — The female juror in Shelton developer James Botti’s federal corruption case — who attempted to read personal observations from a journal she’s been keeping to fellow jurors during deliberations earlier today — has been dismissed.
U.S. District Judge Charles Haight, who dismissed the juror, called the 11 remaining jurors back into the courtroom later in the day and asked them four questions, including whether anyone attempted to discuss the case with them outside the jury room, of if they personally made statements to another juror before other jurors arrived to deliberate.
All jurors responded no to all four questions.
He also asked them if, as a result of what happened earlier in the day, they would be still be able to act as an impartial jury. All said they still could.
Haight then sent the jurors back to deliberate.
The dismissal came after Haight interviewed the jury foreperson and the juror who had the journal.
The female foreperson told Haight, during questioning this morning, that when the juror attempted to read from the journal, “We told her to stop it right now.”
The foreperson said the same juror attempted to discuss a conversation she had earlier in the trial with another juror, but didn’t say what that conversation was about.
Haight then asked the foreperson if she believed the juror who brought in the journal could continue to openly deliberate in this case. The foreperson shook her head no.
Haight then called in the juror, who told the judge she’s been keeping personal journals for 27 years. She told the judge it appeared the jury could not get a consensus in the case and also said one juror said that (Botti) has “the best lawyer in New Haven,” a reference to Botti’s attorney, William F. Dow, III.
Haight then asked the juror if she could continue to deliberate and she told him that she often played chess in championship tournaments and that when you play chess you have to concentrate on the big picture and, if you don’t, you lose.
She also told Haight that she has “logic and reason” and can get “500 signatures for you that can tell you that.”
Haight asked the juror why she brought in her personal journal into the jury room despite his daily order against doing so.
She said she didn’t remember the order, adding she brought them in so “I can say verbatim (to the other jurors) what was said” in court.
She also told the judge that she had a conversation with at least one other juror on the way home, but didn’t elaborate.
The jury has been deliberating the fate of Botti since the afternoon of March 25.
Botti, 47, of Maple Avenue, Shelton is accused of conspiring with Shelton Mayor Mark A. Lauretti to deprive the city’s residents of honest government, bribing the mayor and committing mail fraud. Lauretti has not been charged with any wrongdoing and has repeatedly denied the accusation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Schechter and Rahul Kale maintain Botti used the mayor’s influence to push through approval of his 828 Bridgeport Ave. project, which resulted in the construction of two restaurants, a bank branch and a hotel on land that formerly housed a vacant perfume factory.
The prosecution claims pressure was put on Planning & Zoning Commission members to vote in favor of the project during their June 20, 2006 meeting. Just a week earlier, it appeared that the commission would deny approval of the plan.
—–By Michael P. Mayko
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Wow..! Imagine being judged by a jury of your peers, how scary is that? Do you know how many wack-jobs are out there without an ounce of common sense.