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Tossed Juror Cites a Dispute By Nate Carlisle Salt Lake Tribune September 26, 2007 http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_7001463 St. George - The juror who was dismissed Tuesday morning from Warren S. Jeffs' rape-as-an-accomplice trial said there was a dispute over how she answered a question about sex abuse in her own past. On Tuesday night, after the verdict of guilty on two counts was announced, 21-year-old Andrea Harold explained she had a personal experience involving sexual abuse. But Harold, a nail technician from Washington, said she did not feel she had misled the court. Instead, she attributed her dismissal to a disagreement with another juror, who passed 5th District Judge James L. Shumate a note about a comment she made during deliberations. A questionnaire given to all potential jurors asked: "Have you or anyone close to you ever been sexually abused or assaulted? If yes, please explain." Harold said she answered the question but, "I left it open for interpretation on their part." Attorneys on both sides of the case accepted Harold as a juror, and she sat through almost two weeks of testimony, arguments and 13 hours of deliberations over two days. Harold said she was prepared to convict Jeffs on both counts, and in trying to persuade three holdouts to do the same, she disclosed her history. "I was trying to use my own personal experience to say there's no way she could refuse sex and two days later consent to sex," Harold said. Another juror, Deidre Shaw, 32, said she confronted Harold about whether she had disclosed the incident on her questionnaire. "She admitted she hadn't totally honestly answered it on her questionnaire," Shaw said Tuesday night in an interview. Shaw said Harold went on to say, "You really got me thinking about that now. I don't know if I was honest about it." Harold had a different account of the conversation with Shaw. Harold said she and Shaw, who was one of the three not-guilty votes, "had a big argument [Monday] and I think that's the reason for the note to the judge." Shaw disputed her interaction with Harold was an argument. "You have to be honest from Day One," Shaw said. Shaw wrote a note Tuesday morning to Shumate. He spoke with Shaw, then Harold. Harold said she could not remember what Shumate said to her because she was "so flustered" but she agreed she should be dismissed from the jury. Harold said her experience did not make her sympathize with the victim; she said she was ready to convict Jeffs based on the evidence. She also feels she helped the jury reach a verdict. Harold said she came to the 5th District Courthouse in St. George on Tuesday night to give interviews alongside the other jurors. Harold said she did not want to be remembered as "the girl who was thrown off for lying." Contact: ncarlisle@sltrib.com. |
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