Justices Reverse Conviction Over Blogging by Juror

A state appeals court has voided a man's burglary conviction because one of the jurors misled lawyers and wrote a blog about deliberations during the trial. An unpublished opinion released Thursday by a three-judge panel of the 4th District Court of Appeals found that the defendant, Donald McNeely, must be allowed a hearing to determine whether the jury was biased before the conviction can stand.

According to court documents, a juror who served as foreman bragged in his blog about hiding the fact that he was a licensed attorney during jury selection, instead telling the court that he worked as a project manager for a technology company. "More neutral than lawyer, don't ya think," the man wrote.

He also posted detailed accounts of jury deliberations, writing, "Nowhere do I recall the jury instructions mandating I can't post comments in my blog about the trial. (Ha. Sorry, will do.)"

The trial judge in the case threatened to report the juror to the state bar but accepted the verdict.

Details here from NBCSanDiego.com. The Court's opinion is People v. McNeely, No. D048692.