Conviction reversed after juror uses Twitter during trial

An Arkansas juror tweeted during trial, “Choices to be made. Hearts to be broken. We each define the great line.” It was brought to the attention of the court after counsel discovered it and realized a reporter was following the juror. Ultimately, the trial judge found that the juror disregarding a specific instruction not to tweet was not a material breach of the juror's oath. Then, the juror continued to tweet in a similar manner despite constant reminders not to do so.

On appeal before the Arkansas Supreme Court, the court reversed and remanded the conviction as a result of this juror's misconduct (and another juror who slept throughout parts of the trial) (Dimas-Martinez v. State, 2011 Ark. 515 (2011)). The court also ordered a committee to examine limiting juror's access to mobile phones during trial.

Other cases that have dealt with the issue of juror use of social media include:

• Pennsylvania juror updated his Facebook status throughout the trial with comments such as "can't believe tomorrow may actually be the end." The updates were shown on local television news, but the court found there was no outside influence or prejudice. United States v. Fumo, 655 F.3d 288 (3rd Cir. 2011)
• Facebook statuses such as "I may get 2 hang someone" and "Guinness for lunch break," and the juror becoming friends with another juror was not enough to demonstrate prejudice or bias. United States v. Ganias, 2011 WL 4738684 (D. Conn. 2011)
• Juror friending the plaintiff on Facebook and sending pictures from the account to the plaintiff's lawyer that allegedly showed drug use was not improper because testimony indicated the trial had been over prior to the friending. Wilgus v. F/V Sirius, Inc., 665 F. Supp. 2d 23 (D. Me. 2009)

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