By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
And now stay tuned for a federal prosecutorial nightmare.
The Chicago Tribune is reporting that “court officials acknowledged Thursday that information revealed by the Tribune appears to show that a member of the federal jury that convicted Springfield power broker William Cellini concealed two felony convictions.”
Generally, a convicted felon cannot serve on a jury. Cellini was convicted of shaking down an Oscar-winning producer in a case that stemmed from the Rod Blagojevich investigation.
The Tribune reported that attorneys for Cellini may use this latest bombshell to overturn last week’s verdict.
The Trib reported, citing Cook County court records,that the jury has a felony conviction for crack-cocaine possession and a felony conviction for aggravated driving under the influence without a driver’s license.
“I consider this very important information that I was not aware of,” defense attorney Webb told the Trib. “I don’t know the facts here, but based on what the Tribune has reported to me, we are looking into the matter to determine if we have a basis to file a motion for a mistrial because a juror may have been allowed to serve on this jury who was legally disqualified from jury service.”
The Trib reported that the U.S. Attorney’s Office declined comment.
To read more click here.
