One thing the readers of this blog do know though, is that in 2007 it is now imperative that trial lawyers have their staff or investigators perform background checks on jurors during voir dire. There is a wealth of information readily available on the internet these days. It has been over five years since the Supreme Court of Florida approved performing background checks on jurors in Florida trials in the case of Roberts v. Tejada, 814 So.2d 334 (Fla 2002), and yet verdict after verdict is reversed on appeal or post-trial as a result of juror nondisclosure. In this case, it was some considerably outrageous concealment.

The 3rd DCA opinion itself is pretty unremarkable. There was no way the verdict could stand. The jury’s FOREMAN denied in his own handwriting on his written questionnaire that he had ever been involved in any other lawsuits or claims, even though apparently he had been involved in nine civil cases and a criminal one. See, Delfani v. Cromer, 967 So. 2d 384 (Fla 3rd DCA 2007).

Erin’s blog post was sent to me last night by jury consultant, Amy Singer, who wrote “this blog post illustrates the necessity of online searching venire panelists for information.” Amy is obviously right, and this kind of stuff is happening more and more.  In 2005 I started asking every panel member in every voir dire whether they have a web site, a blog, or a page on myspace, facebook or any other website. Back then not many jurors did. But that has been rapidly changing. Business week reported that in 2005 there were 40,000 new blogs popping up each day (Blogs Will Change Your Business). I’m sure the number has only increased since then. In my opinion, these questions are no longer optional in a 2007 voir dire. You can learn more about a juror from visiting their blog or their page on facebook than you can from a month’s worth of questions in the courtroom.

Vesna Jaksic, who does excellent investigative writing on jury issues for The National Law Journal, wrote a piece on blogging jurors this past March (A New Headache for Courts: Blogging Jurors). I was quoted at that time as follows: “Any lawyer who does not inquire during jury selection about a juror’s Internet presence — whether it be a Web site, a blog, an account on MySpace or an account on Match.com — hasn’t done their job.” I think Erin’s post about her jury duty proves my point. I can’t wait to see if she was the Foreperson.

In a concurring opinion, Judge Casanueva, utilized a different analysis to get to the same result. It was undisputed in the case that neither of the attorneys for the parties asked any of the prospective jurors any questions about prior felony convictions or any other questions pertaining to the prospective jurors’ statutory qualifications to serve on a jury. As a result, the judge concluded that the parties had failed to use due diligence during their voir dire, and were therefor unable to meet the third prong of the De La Rosa test which is utilized in cases involving juror concealment. See, De La Rosa v. Zequeira, 659 So. 2d 239 (Fla. 1995).

This case, like the case reported last week, underscores the importance of a thorough voir dire by the parties. Court questionnaires can’t be relied upon. Questions directed to the entire panel are not as good as questions directed to individuals. Prospective jurors can use their silence in these situations to avoid disclosing important information to the Court and attorneys. Background checks on individual jurors are also a critically important tool when conducting jury selection in 2007.

An abundance of information about people is contained in databases on the internet. Sometimes a simple Google search can return a lot of information on an individual, but usually only on people who are somewhat active in their community. For the Average Joe, a more sophisticated database is required. If you are looking for such a database, check out the SmartLinx database published by Lexis.

For a flat monthly fee, you can have virtually unlimited access to the SmartLinx database which enables you to perform extensive, “one-click”, background checks on just about anyone. In order to perform the background check you will have to obtain from the prospective juror during jury selection (via oral questions or a juror questionnaire), certain basic information. You will need, at a minimum, the person’s last name, first name, and the city where they reside. To further expedite and refine your search it would be helpful to have the person’s address, social security number, and date of birth (which can often be obtained via written questionnaire with assistance from a helpful Court).

Armed with this basic information, a SmartLinx search will usually reveal: 1) Voters Registration Information; 2) Political Party Affiliation; 3) Vehicle Ownership; 4) Boat and Plane Ownership; 4) Licensing Information such as Drivers License, Hunting and Fishing Licenses, Weapons Permits, and Professional Licenses; 5) Business and Corporate Information including businesses owned and business associates; 6) Relatives; 7) Neighbors; Home Value (including purchase date and price and amount of mortgage); and 9) Past residence addresses going back many years. With this information you can begin to get a pretty good picture about a person, their interests, and their life.

However, the SmartLinx database does not contain everything. Although it will provide some information on judgments, liens, and bankruptcies, it usually does not contain much information about a person’s litigation history or criminal record. Most of that information is available for free on-line at your local Clerk Of Court’s website, although that site usually will not contain litigation history or criminal history outside of the county.

Jury Selection in this millenium is unlike anything we did in the past. You can now know more about prospective jurors than you could ever know before the internet age. Sometimes this information will be dispositive. Sometimes just informative. But in either situation, the trial lawyer should know everything available about a potential juror before the first strikes are exercised.