Attorney General v Fraill
A juror who contacted a defendant on Facebook during a trial was sentenced to eight months' imprisonment for contempt of court.
Facts
Joanne Fraill was a juror in a long drugs trial in Manchester. During the trial, she exchanged messages on Facebook with one of the defendants, Jamie Sewart, who had already been acquitted, discussing the case while the jury was still deliberating on the other defendants. She also searched the internet for information about Ms Sewart's partner, another defendant. Her conduct came to light and the multi million pound trial collapsed.
Legal principle
The Divisional Court held that Ms Fraill was in contempt of court and sentenced her to eight months' imprisonment. Lord Judge CJ said that her conduct was directly contrary to the oath she had taken and to the directions she had been given, and that the jury system depends on jurors deciding cases on the evidence and not seeking information elsewhere. Jurors who use the internet in breach of the judge's directions undermine the trial process, and imprisonment was inevitable to protect the integrity of the jury system. Ms Sewart received a suspended sentence.
Related cases on juries
- Attorney General v Dallas [2012] EWHC 156 (Admin), [2012] 1 WLR 991
- Bushell's Case (1670) Vaughan 135
- Gregory v United Kingdom (1998) 25 EHRR 577
- Hanif and Khan v United Kingdom (2012) 55 EHRR 16
- R v Abdroikov [2007] UKHL 37, [2007] 1 WLR 2679
- R v Ford [1989] QB 868
- R v Karakaya [2005] EWCA Crim 346, [2005] 2 Cr App R 5
- R v McKenna [1960] 1 QB 411
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