Without question, the numbskull of the week award goes to Jacob Jock (seriously, that’s his name). The 29 year old juror was dismissed after he attempted to Facebook friend the defendant (a young woman) during jury selection. He was eventually selected for the case.
The defendant told her lawyer, who told the judge. After his dismissal, Mr. Jock decided to claim that this was his plan all along (again, on Facebook). He wrote:
“Score ... I got dismissed!! apparently they frown upon sending a friend request to the defendant ... haha.”
Shockingly, Judge Nancy Donnellan was none too pleased. She found him to be in criminal contempt. However, Mr. Jock had evidently still not learned his lesson. Believe it or not, he showed up late to court for his arraignment, his trial and his sentencing.
Mr. Jock was finally sentenced to three days in jail for contempt. I actually think he got off lucky.
If you are interested in learning more about the plethora of information social media sites carry on the web, make sure to check out ASTC’s upcoming webinar called on February 29th at 2:00pm est. It is presented by Dr. Amy Singer and is entitled:
"TWEET ALL ABOUT IT! EXPLORING THE USES AND APPLICATIONS OF SOCIAL MEDIA: FROM DISCOVERY, TO PRE-TRIAL TO THE COURTROOM”
This presentation is free for ASTC members and $50 for non-members. Contact the ASTC office for more information or to RSVP at: [email protected]
Blogger: Matt McCusker
