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Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document 649 _ Filed 03/15/22 Page5of12
LAW OFFICES OF BOBBI C. STERNHEIA\
contrast sharply with other jurors who answered “Yes” to Question 48 and were not struck for
cause, but who disclosed incidents that were not directly analogous to the facts presented at trial.
In this situation, where Juror 50 experienced the same traumatic childhood sexual abuse
that the trial victims did, with many of the same surrounding circumstances, he was not capable
of setting his experiences aside and impartially deciding the case solely on the evidence at trial.
See Daugerdas, 867 F. Supp. 2d at 472 (“Courts imply bias ‘when there are similarities between
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the personal experiences of the juror and the issues being litigated.’” (quoting United States v.
Sampson, 820 F. Supp. 2d 151, 163-64 (D. Mass. 2011)); Sampson 724 F.3d at 167 (“It would be
natural for a juror who had been the victim of [the same crime] to harbor bias against a defendant
accused of such a crime.’’). Had this information come to light during voir dire, Juror 50 would
have been struck for cause. See Motion at 30-38; Sampson, 724 F.3d at 167 (affirming grant of
new trial when juror in a gunpoint bank robbery case did not disclose that she had been
threatened by her husband with a gun); State v. Ashfar, 196 A.3d 93, 94-97 (N.H. 2018)
(affirming grant of new trial when juror in child sexual assault case did not disclose that he was
sexually assaulted by a babysitter when he was five or six years old); Torres, 128 F.3d at 47-48
(affirming for cause strike of juror in a structuring case who did not disclose she had engaged in
similar structuring activity herself); Burton v. Johnson, 948 F.2d 1150 1159 (10th Cir. 1991)
(affirming grant of new trial when juror in murder case involving domestic violence did not
disclose she was living in similarly abusive circumstances at the time of trial).
Furthermore, Juror 50’s decision to speak to multiple members of the international press
after trial to “tell his story” shows how closely he identified with the victims in this case and
reveals his bias. Juror 50 testified at the Hearing that he usually does not share his experience of
sexual abuse. (Tr. 22) (“I don’t tell very many people.”). Despite his normal reserve, Juror 50
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| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00010311.jpg |
| File Size | 763.7 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 94.6% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,300 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 17:57:27.028596 |