Despite judge’s warning, Dixon jurors went on Facebook 

Posted: 9:07 pm Wed, December 2, 2009
By Brendan Kearney
Daily Record Legal Affairs Writer

Members of the jury who convicted Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon of misappropriating gift cards Tuesday became friends on Facebook as much as a week earlier and referenced the case in online messages between days of deliberations.

While it is not yet clear if the five jurors’ outside-of-court communications constitute juror misconduct, Visiting Judge Dennis M. Sweeney had routinely instructed them during the trial not to discuss the case with anyone outside deliberations, specifically prohibiting Internet commentary.

Sweeney said they could tell their families and employers that they were hearing the Dixon case but otherwise encouraged them to keep a low profile.

The retired judge, who was specially assigned to handle the City Hall corruption prosecutions in Baltimore City Circuit Court, is an expert on juries and did not release any juror information until he heard arguments from lawyers representing local media Wednesday morning.

Reached late Wednesday, Dixon’s legal team was aware of the Facebook activity between the jurors but declined to comment on whether they would play any part in their promised post-trial motions.

Deputy State Prosecutor Thomas “Mike” McDonough was not aware of the exchanges, but said it sounded “pretty innocuous.”

“The prohibition was not deliberating and not discussing the case,” he said. “I haven’t heard anything that amounts to that.”

Juror No. 6, Shiron Davis, who confirmed the Facebook pages corresponded with the jurors, said the first online overtures came last week, in the middle of what ended up being seven days of deliberations.

“I didn’t see anything wrong with that at the time,” said Davis, a 36-year-old mother of two and an avid player of Facebook’s Farmville. “We didn’t discuss anything as far as the case was concerned. … No, not until it was over.”

Wednesday morning, she wrote to Juror No. 12, James Chaney, “We should have stayed at our last job for another week..lol…the pay wasnt bad and we got free meals…..be careful what u wish for!!!!!!”

Names released

Sweeney released the names and ZIP codes of the members of the jury after brief argument from lawyers for local media outlets Wednesday morning. Sweeney decided the strong presumption of open courts outweighed two thirds of the jury’s — and his — desire for privacy after a highly public trial.

While all juror information was kept private during the trial, “we’re now at a different stage, the jury having been discharged,” Sweeney said before ruling.

Daniel Doty, who argued the motion on behalf of The Maryland-District of Columbia-Delaware Broadcasters’ Association Inc., had also asked for more — jurors’ age, education, occupation, and spouse’s occupation — but he called Sweeney’s decision “a good compromise.”

While eight jurors asked Sweeney not to disclose their personal information, Davis, a certified medical assistant in Towson, was not among them.

Reached Wednesday afternoon, she said the jurors took a vote at the beginning of deliberations. It was 9-3 to convict on the two theft counts and misconduct in office.

A consensus to convict on the one misappropriation count had been reached by Nov. 23, the Monday before Thanksgiving, she said.

Davis, Chaney and Chereese Barrett  — Juror No. 8 – all became friends on Nov. 24, according to their Facebook pages.

Juror No. 11, Elaine Pollack, became friends with at least Davis and Chaney over the Thanksgiving weekend. And Shawana Ramirez, identified as Shawana Tyler on the list of jurors released Wednesday, became friends with Chaney on Monday.

Davis even invited juror Chaney over for Thanksgiving dinner. She said she lives in Edmondson Village — four blocks from the mayor in West Baltimore.

“HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO THE CHANEY FAMILY…PLEASE BRING A LUNCH AND A BETTER MOOD ON MONDAY…LOL…IF U AND THE WIFE WANT TO COME TO MY HOUSE TODAY THE OFFER STILL STANDS,” Davis wrote on Chaney’s wall on Thanksgiving morning.

Sunday evening, Elaine Pollack, Juror No. 11, wrote to Chaney: “Hi James! Ready for round……..oh I lost count! See you tomorrow!”

“Lmao. Yeah its probably round 12 or 13 but im ready i guess. Hopefully it will be the last round,” he wrote.

On the morning of the verdict, in response to such optimism, Chereese Barrett, juror No. 8, wrote, “James I feel u on this 1! I do! I really do!”

Later that morning, a non-juror named Al Morgan responded with “Not guilty ….”

Tuesday evening — after the verdict — Davis completed the thread by writing, “NO AL, GUILTY AS HELL..SORRY…HEY JAMES”

Pollack said Wednesday that the communications were a matter of just keeping in touch.

There were “no broken rules,” she said.

“I think it’s harmless if you’re using Facebook as a social network,” she said, “and I believe that’s how it was being used, and keeping it within the limits of what Judge Sweeney asked.”

Attempts to reach the other jurors Wednesday were unsuccessful.