Juror Mitch Landrieu
How did the defense attorney let this happen? New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu has apparently made the cut to be on the jury of a murder trial in New Orleans. I can’t imagine why a defense attorney would want a politician on that jury. Granted, they can’t exactly pick who is on the jury, but that’s a high-profile individual worthy of a strike, I would think. No politician, even a Democrat in New Orleans, would want to be the guy who let a killer go free. Even someone who only might be a killer.
Perhaps the other jurors available were even worse, and the defense attorney ran out of strikes.Report
I suppose. The other thought that crossed my mind: It’s worth the risk when you consider the attention it will bring to the case. From a cynical standpoint, publicity for the lawyer. From a non-cynical standpoint, publicity to a client who might have a sympathetic story to tell.
When I was a jury candidate for a serial killer trial, I was struck using a strike. But it was the south and I am against the death penalty, so they probably had strikes to spare on the likes of me. it took the (multi-racial, 7-women/5-men) jury less than three hours to sentence the guy to death.Report