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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
----------------------------------------------------------------------X
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
-v.-

09 CR 466 (BMC)

JOAQUIN ARCHIVALDO GUZMAN LOERA,
Defendant.
----------------------------------------------------------------------X

MEMORANDUM SUPPORTING JOAQUIN ARCHIVALDO
GUZMAN LOERA’S FED. R. CRIM. P. 33 MOTION FOR A NEW
TRIAL UPON AN EVIDENTIARY HEARING

LAW OFFICE OF MARC FERNICH
810 Seventh Avenue, Suite 620
New York, NY 10019
(212) 446-2346
maf@fernichlaw.com
LAW OFFICES OF JEFFREY LICHTMAN
11 East 44th Street, Suite 501
New York, NY 10017
(212) 581-1001
jhl@jeffreylichtman.com
Attorneys for Defendant Joaquin Guzman

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
----------------------------------------------------------------------X
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
-v.-

09 CR 466 (BMC)

JOAQUIN ARCHIVALDO GUZMAN LOERA,
Defendant.
----------------------------------------------------------------------X
MEMORANDUM SUPPORTING JOAQUIN ARCHIVALDO
GUZMAN LOERA’S FED. R. CRIM. P. 33 MOTION FOR A NEW
TRIAL UPON AN EVIDENTIARY HEARING
QUESTION PRESENTED
In a case generating publicity the Court called “unparalleled,” a
juror contacted a reporter a day after the verdict to volunteer that panel
members had violated their oath and scorned the Court’s incessant
instructions by actively following and discussing the blizzard of media
coverage, and falsely denying it upon judicial inquiry, throughout the
three-month trial.
In the circumstances presented, does the jury’s exposure to a flood
of presumptively prejudicial extraneous information – including
inadmissible allegations that the defendant drugged and raped 13-yearold girls – mandate an evidentiary hearing to determine (a) the

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misconduct’s precise nature and scope; (b) the information’s probable
objective effect on a hypothetical average jury; (c) whether the jurors’
reported lies to the Court upon inquiry dictated disqualification or
mistrial; and (d) whether the whistleblowing juror or any other
intentionally withheld disabling bias during voir dire, collectively
thwarting the defendant’s Fifth and Sixth amendment rights to due
process and fair trial before an impartial jury?
STATEMENT
The ultimate test of a justice system’s fairness and integrity is how
it performs under stress – in infamous cases involving heinous
accusations and notorious defendants. Joaquin Guzman, no less than any
other suspect hauled into an American court, is entitled to the
fundamental “touchstone” of due process: an “impartial” jury “capable
and willing to decide the case solely on the evidence before it.” US v.
Greer, 285 F.3d 158, 170 (CA2 2002) (citations and internal quotation
marks omitted). Recent media reports — presumptively accurate,
credible and reliable — strongly suggest Guzman may not have gotten
that bare essential. Cf. Fed. R. Evid. 803(b)(3)(A), 902(6).

2

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Reports of jury misconduct, of course, are nothing new in highprofile cases.1 One factor that sets these apart is a juror’s frank confession
that panel members actively sought out and openly discussed the most
sensational extrinsic information — including vile allegations that the
defendant raped young girls — overtly defying the Court’s perpetual
injunctions and cannily lying to Your Honor when asked about it. E.g.,
US v. Tin Yat Chin, 275 F. Supp. 2d 382, 385 (EDNY 2003) (“[t]he most
potentially prejudicial material … consists of specific facts about the
specific defendant then on trial”) (citation and internal quotation marks
omitted). Another distinguishing feature: a juror with no apparent
agenda, ulterior motive or reason to fabricate voluntarily approached a
journalist to divulge the misconduct, whereas jurors unhappy with

E.g., US v. Lynne Stewart, 590 F.3d 93, 133-34 (CA2 2009) (lawyer for spiritual
leader of Islamic terror group); US v. Martha Stewart, 433 F.3d 273, 302-08 (CA2
2006) (media mogul and TV personality); US v. Bin Laden, No. S7R 98CR1023KTD,
2005 WL 287404 (SDNY Feb. 7, 2005) (al Qaeda embassy bombers), aff’d, 552 F.3d
93 (CA2), reh’g denied, 553 F.3d 150 (CA2 2008); US v. Schwarz, 283 F.3d 76, 97-100
(CA2 2002) (cops charged in Abner Louima assault); US v. Gigante, 53 F. Supp. 2d
274 (EDNY 1999) (mafia boss); US v. Ianniello, 866 F.2d 540 (CA2 1989) (mafia bosses
in 13-month megatrial), rev’d on other grounds, 937 F.2d 797 (CA2), modified on reh’g,
952 F.2d 623 (CA2), amended, 952 F.2d 624 (CA2 1991), rev’d on other grounds, 505
US 317 (1992), on remand, 974 F.2d 231 (CA2 1992), vacated on other grounds, 8 F.3d
909 (CA2 1993) (en banc); US v. Moon, 718 F.2d 1210, 1233-36 (CA2 1983)
(Unification Church founder).
1

3

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verdicts typically reach out to the defense or are contacted by someone
acting on its behalf.2 If an evidentiary hearing confirms these
exceptionally unusual reports, justice and Criminal Rule 33 will demand
a fair retrial – one that affords Guzman the basic guarantees enshrined
in the Fifth and Sixth amendments. E.g., Moten, 582 F.2d at 664 (every
“defendant has a right to a trial by an impartial jury, unprejudiced by
extraneous influence”).
BACKGROUND
Throughout Guzman’s trial, the Court continually admonished the
anonymous jury to avoid the gavel-to-gavel publicity – unprecedented in
its global scope and intensity – saturating the case. T 5011 (THE COURT:
“The [press attention] has been unparalleled in my experience and I
think most other judges.”). Observing “better practice,” the Court
persistently warned panelists to ignore the avalanche of media coverage

Cf., e.g., Lynne Stewart, 590 F.3d at 133-34 (“post hoc” deliberation impropriety
allegations caused by juror “dissatisfaction” with verdict “do not require further post[trial] inquiry”) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted); Schwarz, 283 F.3d
at 88 (jurors contacted defense counsel after verdict to discuss aspects of
deliberations); US v. Moten, 582 F.2d 654, 665 (CA2 1978) (“some jurors, especially
those who were unenthusiastic about the verdict or who have grievances against
fellow jurors, [c]ould be led into imagining sinister happenings which … did not occur
or … saying things which … would serve only to decrease public confidence in
verdicts”).
2

4

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– print, broadcast, digital and social – surrounding the ongoing litigation.
US v. Ganias, 755 F.3d 125, 132 n.4, 133 (CA2 2014) (cautioning that “the
availability of the Internet and the abiding presence of social networking
now dwarf the previously held concern that a juror may be exposed to a
newspaper article or television program”) (citation and internal
quotation marks omitted), rev’d on other grounds, 824 F.3d 199 (CA2
2016) (en banc).3
A VICE News report by Keegan Hamilton, published eight days
after the verdict, reveals that “at least five jurors” systematically
“violated” their oath and flouted the Court’s instructions by “following
the case in the media during the trial.”4 “[R]each[ing] out” by email a day
after the “verdict came down,” an unidentified juror apprised VICE in a
two-hour video interview conducted a day later: “‘You know how we were
told we can’t look at the media during the trial? Well, we did. Jurors did.’”
Headlining the juror’s bombshell disclosures:
E.g., T 5752 (“Ladies and gentlemen, we’ll break for the day. Please stay away from
any media coverage of the case, do not communicate or say anything to anybody about
this case, don’t do any research on the case. Keep your mind open.”) (Jan. 17, 2019).
3

Inside El Chapo’s Jury: A Juror Speaks for the First Time about Convicting the
Kingpin,
https://news.vice.com/en_us/article/vbwzny/inside-el-chapos-jury-a-jurorspeaks-for-first-time-about-convicting-the-kingpin (last visited March 18, 2019).
4

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 Multiple panel members – including the interviewee and
“‘some other jurors that’” person “‘knew’” – “routinely” if not
“‘constantly’” checked Hamilton’s “personal Twitter feed
and tweets from other journalists.”5 Twitter, naturally, was
abuzz with “news, analysis, and observations from the
courtroom” and elsewhere. As a hearing will verify, much of
that content – especially the so-called “analysis” and
“observations” – referenced inflammatory evidence the
Court had excluded and pronounced Guzman guilty before
the proof had closed and the jury began to deliberate.6
These attributions have the ring of truth. It seems unlikely that the juror would
contact Hamilton within a day of the verdict’s return unless the juror had been
following Hamilton’s trial coverage.
5

By our count at least seven different reporters regularly tweeted about the case.
Jurors may have followed any or all of them, so they could have read tweets
numbering well into the thousands over a three-month period. For a smattering of
representative tweets – the tip of the proverbial iceberg – see, e.g., Emily Saul
(@Emily_Saul_), Twitter (Feb. 2, 2019) (“#Chapo allegedly ‘believed that sexual
activity with young girls gave him “life,”’ per disturbing new docs.”); Noah Hurowitz
(@NoahHurowitz), Twitter (Feb. 2, 2019) (“Here’s my story for @RollingStone on the
explosive allegations that El Chapo regularly drugged and raped underage sex
workers, from docs unsealed today. The documents contain a ton of details and we’ll
be updating the story in a bit.”); Keegan Hamilton (@keegan_hamilton), Twitter (Jan.
30, 2019) (“Chapo appears unperturbed…. Doesn’t look like he realizes this is likely
one of the last days he ever has outside of a federal prison.”); id. (Jan. 29, 2019) (“What
the jurors probably saw was the utter lack of a defense.”); id. (Feb. 6, 2019) (“We’re
scrutinizing every tiny development, but there’s still no real doubt about the outcome.
One way or another, Chapo is getting life in prison.”); Alan Feuer (@alanfeuer),
Twitter (Feb. 6, 2019) (“[T]here’s really only one way this trial is headed in the end.
It’s just a matter of how long it takes to get there.”); Keegan Hamilton
(@keegan_hamilton), Twitter (Feb. 6, 2019) (“Here are Chapo’s other alleged murder
conspiracy victims. Of these, maybe Miguel Martinez Martinez and Ramon Arellano
Felix could be construed as personal. The rest seem pretty clearly related to drug
trafficking.”); Carl Hancock (@carlhancock), Twitter (4 Feb. 2019, 6:50 PM) (“[I]f the
jury were to allow him to walk there would be immediate suspicion that the jury was
compromised. That their identities were compromised and the cartel got to them. But
I doubt that. He’ll be found guilty of enough counts to put him away for the rest of his
life.”).
6

For a smattering of representative articles – again the proverbial iceberg’s tip

6

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– see, e.g., Steve Frank, El Chapo Lawyer Suggested Hiring Belly Dancer to Visit
Accused in Jail (Jan. 14, 2019) (“‘[E]ven if he’s not convicted of the top count, even [if]
he’s not numero uno racketeer of the Sinaloa cartel, he’s certainly up there enough to
be convicted of everything else, in which case he’s never getting out of prison’”),
cbsnews.com/news/el-chapo-belly-dancer-text-defense-attorney-drug-trial
(last
visited March 18, 2019); Leon Krauze, The End of El Chapo (Feb. 5, 2019) (“The trial
also helped uncover allegations that Guzmán procured young girls he would drug and
then rape. Guzmán would refer to the girls, some as young as 13, as his ‘vitamins.’
This is not a man who deserves a nickname or any other term of endearment…. He
is … personally responsible for thousands of deaths … a ruthless criminal who helped
poison millions … Joaquín Guzmán built a perverse empire through the suffering of
others. He does not deserve a nickname. ‘El Chapo’ should be no more.”),
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/02/el-chapo-trial-folk-hero-myth.html (last
visited March 18, 2019); Hollie McKay, Cruelty of El Chapo’s Sinaloa Cartel Knows
No Bounds: Beheadings by Chainsaw, Body Parts Strewn in the Streets (Dec. 8, 2018)
(“the cartel’s horrific tactics include the injection of adrenaline and other substances
that affect the central nervous system of its victims, ‘which kept them awake to
enhance the responses of pain receptors during slow, prolonged torture.’ These tactics
are used on women and children … including ‘family members of rivals or snitches,
to elicit information and sow fear. These cartels have a history of sexually assaulting
the family members of their target, and forcing the target to observe….’ There’s
beheading by chainsaw – a rumored favored method of Guzmán, who is said to
feature in a 2010 video doing exactly that to murder victim Hugo Hernandez. Even
worse, Hernandez’s face was reportedly peeled off after he was killed and stitched on
a football. Then there is the practice of putting people in drums and either boiling
them or setting them on fire or feeding humans to exotic animals like lions and tigers.
One wealthy Tijuana native described … the day she came home from work … to find
a package containing her husband’s body, chopped up in pieces and sent back by
cartel associates.”), https://www.foxnews.com/world/cruelty-of-el-chapos-sinaloacartel-knows-no-bounds-beheadings-by-chainsaw-body-parts-strewn-in-the-streets
(last visited March 18, 2019); Alan Feuer, El Chapo Trial: How Many Gory Details
Can One Jury Take? (Dec. 6, 2018) (“It remains unclear how many more
assassinations will be mentioned at the trial — and just how explicit the details will
be. The government has not yet offered the evidence it has about the murder of
Francisco Aceves Urías, a Guzmán gunman known as Barbarino, who was slain three
years ago in a restaurant parking lot in Mexico. Nor has the jury heard about the two
rival traffickers whom Mr. Guzmán is accused of doing away with after relaxing over
lunch. Prosecutors claim that once the men were dead, he had their bodies tossed into
a pit and set on fire.”), https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/06/nyregion/el-chapotrial.html (last visited March 18, 2019).
One line of coverage misconstrued Guzman’s 30-minute defense case as an
“extraordinary capitulation” that only underscored his guilt, confounding the maxim

7

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 Though “[c]ell phones were confiscated” and the Court
directed jurors “not to discuss the case” – “‘You can’t talk
about the case among each other’” ahead of deliberations –
the jury reportedly “‘broke that rule a bunch of times.’”
Some conversations “happened on the ride home.” Other
times jurors would “whisper to each other or mouth words.”
Topics discussed included, significantly, “the latest media
coverage.” (Emphasis supplied.)
 Lacing the Twitter feeds that “several” jurors followed were
updates on developments occurring in the jury’s absence,
including reports on evidence that the Court “ordered
withheld” from the panel’s consideration. The most
explosive allegation, publicly unveiled “on the eve” of
“deliberations,” was a claim that Guzman had “drugged and
raped girls as young as 13.” At least five deliberating jurors
and two alternates knew and “‘talk[ed] about’” the “child
rape allegations,” branding them “‘disgusting’” and “‘totally
wrong.’”
 Worse, the juror read “before arriving at the courthouse” a
Hamilton tweet reporting that Your Honor was “likely going
to meet with the jurors in private and ask whether they had
seen the story.” Armed with that tip, the juror alerted the
others in advance to the coming inquiry and convinced them
to lie to the Court, falsely denying knowledge of the
that an accused need not call any witnesses, present any evidence or otherwise prove
his innocence. E.g., Harriet Alexander, ‘El Chapo’ Guzman Facing Life as Lawyers
Offer Extraordinary Capitulation in ‘Trial of the Century’ (3 Feb. 2019),
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/02/03/could-chapo-guzman-walk-free-jurydecides-fate-end-telenovela/amp/; Alan Feuer, El Chapo’s Defense? It Lasted Just 30
Minutes (Jan. 29, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/29/nyregion/el-chapotrial.html (both as visited March 21, 2019). Since the VICE report impugns the
“presumption” that Guzman’s jury followed the Court’s contrary instructions (e.g., US
v. Baker, 899 F.3d 123, 134 (CA2 2018), cert. denied, 139 S. Ct. 577 (2018)), these
flagrant distortions of the proof burden in criminal cases demonstrably rate as
prejudicial.

8

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blockbuster child molestation charge. “‘I had told them if
you saw what happened in the news, just make sure that
the judge is coming in and he’s gonna ask us, so keep a
straight face. So he did indeed come to our room and ask us
if we knew, and we all denied it, obviously.’”7
 Why the lies? Fear of “serious” repercussions. “‘I thought we
would get arrested,’ the juror said. ‘I thought they were
going to hold me in contempt.… I didn’t want to say
anything or rat out my fellow jurors. I didn’t want to be that
person. I just kept it to myself, and I just kept on looking at
your [Hamilton’s] Twitter feed.’” All this even though the
Court took pains to assure the jurors, “You’re not in any
trouble” and “You haven’t done anything wrong.” T 6947-48;
see also id. 6945, 6949.
 Another external item jurors knew, apparently talked and
seemingly misled the Court about was an adulterous “affair”
– widely reported during trial – a defense lawyer allegedly
had with “one of his clients.” “[M]oments” after answering
negatively a “vague [in camera] question” from Your Honor
— had the jury seen “any recent media coverage” around the
time the alleged affair surfaced? — one of their number
promptly “used a smartwatch to find [an] article” discussing
it. E.g., T 5009 (DEFENSE COUNSEL: “It was … a rather
salacious article and it’s something which can be offensive
and if it is offensive to certain people that can very well color
their opinion of our client in this particular case”); id. 501213 (DEFENSE COUNSEL: article’s nature and content may
The panelists’ evident dishonesty punctuates the prescience of Guzman’s
unsuccessful request – denied partly because of what the Court termed its “very good
rapport with this jury” – that “each of the jurors individually be polled in camera” and
not “en mass[e]. It should be individual because I think this is something that perhaps
some people will not want to say if they see no one is raising their hands, and it’s such
a crucial issue at such a crucial time, literally as the jury is about to get the case.” T
6935, 6945; see also id. 6939 (“Raping underaged girls, Judge, there’s nothing that
could be worse.”); id. 6935 (“it’s a tag line in every single article … all over the world”).
7

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“particularly” offend women jurors, “spill[ing] over on Mr.
Guzman”).
 Finally, despite an extensive “jury selection process” that
featured a detailed written questionnaire running 31 pages,
the whistleblowing juror withheld during voir dire his
burning desire to participate in the “‘case of the century,’” a
“‘once-in-a-lifetime’” chance to be “part of history.”
Compounding that omission, the juror “kept” copious trial
notes “against” the Court’s “instructions,” perhaps with an
eye toward future literary or commercial opportunities.
ARGUMENT
LOGIC, LAW AND JUSTICE COMPEL A SEARCHING
EVIDENTIARY HEARING AND A FAIR RETRIAL
I.

PREVAILING LEGAL FRAMEWORK
The standards for obtaining a posttrial hearing on claims of jury

misconduct are settled and straightforward.
First, as the Second Circuit reaffirmed just last summer, some
form of exploration is “mandatory”8 where “reasonable grounds for
investigation exist.” Moten, 582 F.2d at 667; accord, e.g., US v. Vitale, 459
F.3d 190, 197 (CA2 2006) (posttrial jury hearing “required” upon
“reasonable grounds for investigation”) (emphasis supplied) (citing Moon,
718 F.2d at 1234).

8

Baker, 889 F.3d at 134 (emphasis supplied); Schwarz, 283 F.3d at 98.

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Second, “reasonable grounds for investigation exist” when there is
“clear, strong, substantial and incontrovertible evidence” that a “specific,
non-speculative impropriety has occurred.” Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 543
(citations, internal quotation marks and brackets omitted); accord, e.g.,
US v. Sabhnani, 599 F.3d 215, 250 (CA2 2010) (similar) (collecting cases).
Third, “incontrovertible” doesn’t mean “irrebuttable; if the
allegations were conclusive, there would be no need for a hearing.”
Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 54; see Vitale, 459 F.3d at 197 (“allegations need
not be conclusive”). The “issue, it must be remembered, is not whether
the defendant is presently able to prove his case conclusively; rather, it
is whether his showing is sufficiently strong to warrant an investigation
to discover the truth.” Moten, 582 F.2d at 668 (on reh’g pet.).
Fourth, a “duty to investigate” thus arises upon “concrete
allegations” of “specific” instances of “inappropriate conduct that
constitute competent and relevant evidence.” Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 543
(citations and internal quotation marks omitted); accord, e.g., Schwarz,
283 F.3d at 98-99 (“clear and specific allegations of inappropriate”
behavior “plainly” comprised “‘strong, substantial and incontrovertible

11

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evidence’” and were “sufficiently serious to warrant further inquiry”)
(quoting Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 543).
In

Guzman’s

case,

a

whistleblowing

juror’s

volunteering

declarations against interest to a neutral third party easily vaults these
modest hurdles. Cf. Fed. R. Evid. 803(b)(3)(A). As our BACKGROUND
section attests, the VICE article identifies a concrete and specific “series
of events” indicating that “very serious irregularit[ies] occurred during
the trial of this” action. Moten, 582 F.2d at 660, 666. “There is ample
support for the propriety of a hearing in cases like this one.” Id. at 666.
Indeed, courts in our circuit routinely conduct posttrial hearings or
reverse their denial on commensurate — if not slimmer and less
troubling — proffers.9 With so “many unanswered questions” and
“various unknowns” attending the juror’s reports, departing from that
wealth of precedent here – “fail[ing] to order a hearing now” – would
“seem like willful blindness.” Vitale, 459 F.3d at 197-99.

E.g., US v. Parse, 789 F.3d 83, 86 (CA2 2015); Ganias, 755 F.3d at 132; Sabhnani,
599 F.3d at 249; US v. Nieves, 354 F. App’x 547, 552 (CA2 2009); Vitale, 459 F.3d at
200; Greer, 285 F.3d at 166; Schwarz, 283 F.3d at 99-100; Ianniello, 866 F.3d at 541;
US v. Colombo, 869 F.2d 149, 150 (CA2 1989); US v. Carmona, 858 F.2d 66, 69 (CA2
1988); Moten, 582 F.2d at 667-68.
9

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More precisely, the tipster’s revelations implicate three distinct but
related types of misconduct that, separately and together, “certainly
warrant[]” robust exploration – especially in the absence of any
discernible motive to lie. Moten, 582 F.2d at 666.
II.

JURORS CONSULTED AND DISCUSSED DESPICABLE
EXTRINSIC INFORMATION, ENGAGING IN PREMATURE
DELIBERATIONS
According to the juror’s VICE interview, at least five panel

members actively followed and openly discussed ongoing media accounts
of the trial, including extra-record charges that Guzman drugged and
raped children and one of his lawyers carried on an adulterous affair with
a client. If so – and there’s no reason to doubt the juror’s word at this
point10 – the panelists blithely disobeyed emphatic orders against both
behaviors and committed undeniable misconduct.11 They thereby
violated Guzman’s Fifth and Sixth amendment rights to confront his
accusers and to an impartial decision based solely on evidence properly
Cf. Colombo, 869 F.2d at 151 (“we must assume the truth” of affidavit asserting
juror misconduct absent hearing).
10

E.g., US v. Cox, 324 F.3d 77, 86 (CA2 2003) (“[premature deliberations present a
number of dangers” touching the “Sixth Amendment right to a fair and impartial jury
trial,” and they “may constitute juror misconduct” where, as here, the jury is told to
“refrain”) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted); US v. Feng Li, 630 F.
Appx. 29, 32-33 (CA2 2015) (similar).
11

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presented in court. E.g., Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 541-42 (outside influences
threaten Sixth Amendment “confrontation” and “fair trial” rights). And
those infirmities may well counsel reversal of Guzman’s conviction and
retrial before an untainted tribunal – especially where the Court
conceded the child rape reports were “thoroughly covered” and “very
bad.” T 6938, 6942. As the Second Circuit has long recognized:
It is well-settled that any extra-record
information of which a juror becomes aware is
presumed prejudicial. See Remmer v. US, 347 U.S.
227, 229 (1954). A government showing that the
information is harmless will overcome this
presumption. See id. “Where an extraneous
influence is shown, the court must apply an
objective test, assessing for itself the likelihood
that the influence would affect a typical
juror.” Bibbins v. Dalsheim, 21 F.3d 13, 17 (CA2
1994) (per curiam) (internal quotation marks
omitted).
A
“trial
court’s
post-verdict
determination of extra-record prejudice must be
an objective one,” focusing on the information’s
probable effect on a “hypothetical average
juror.” US v. Calbas, 821 F.2d 887, 896 n. 9
(CA21987); see Bibbins, 21 F.3d at 17. The court
may not inquire into “the degree upon which the
extra-record information was used in deliberations
and the impression which jurors actually had
about
it.” Calbas, 821
F.2d
at
897 (citing Fed.R.Evid.
606(b)); see Bibbins, 21
F.3d at 17 (juror’s affidavit as to how extrinsic
information affected the thinking and voting of the
jurors or the deliberations of the jury as a whole
was inadmissible). However, in applying the
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objective test, the court “may appropriately
consider the circumstances surrounding the
introduction of [the] information in making [its]
determination.” Calbas, 821 F.2d at 896 n. 9.
In the evidentiary hearing in this case, the
District Court asked jurors whether the extrarecord information impacted their ability to be fair
and impartial. Because this was a post-verdict
hearing,
that
line
of
questioning
was
improper. See Bibbins, 21
F.3d
at
17 (under Fed.R.Evid. 606(b), “[e]ven when a juror
attests to receiving information outside the record,
the juror may not go on to testify about the effect
of that information on the juror’s mental processes
or the jury’s deliberations”); Ianniello, 866 F.2d at
544 (“Whether the jury relied on improper
evidence ... is not a question to be asked jurors....”).
Greer, 285 F.3d at 173-74; see, e.g., Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 544 (new trial
“necessary if “‘hypothetical average jury’” would’ve been “led astray”); US
ex rel. Owen v. McMann, 435 F.2d 813, 818, 820 (CA2 1970) (Friendly, J.)
(prejudice determination turns on “nature of [extraneous] matter and its
probable effect on a hypothetical average jury”; verdict inherently lacks
due process where there’s a high “probability that prejudice will result”);
US v. Farhane, 634 F.3d 127, 168 (CA2 2011) (“the law presumes
prejudice from a jury’s exposure to extra-record evidence”).
The whistleblowing juror’s VICE revelations check all the boxes
identified in Greer and associated cases. Extra-judicial reports that
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Guzman drugged and raped minors would surely have a negative and
disturbing “effect on a hypothetical average jury.” Owen, 435 F.2d at 820.
As defense counsel asked rhetorically, “What could be worse than that or
even equal?” T 6941.
III. BY DISDAINING THEIR INSTRUCTIONS AND LYING
ABOUT IT ON JUDICIAL INQUIRY, THE JURORS
DEMONSTRATED UNFITNESS TO SERVE, REQUIRING
DISQUALIFICATION OR MISTRIAL
Beyond spurning unequivocal warnings to avoid press coverage of
the case, the juror’s VICE remarks indicate that panel members brazenly
lied to the Court when asked about it. They did so on at least two
occasions that we know of. Tipped by the whistleblower that the Court
would privately inquire if they’d seen or discussed the depraved child
rape allegations – after he’d learned of the coming interrogation by
illicitly checking Hamilton’s Twitter feed – all the jurors apparently got
together and hatched a plan to falsely claim ignorance. And right after
Your Honor quizzed the panelists on reports of a Guzman lawyer’s
marital infidelity, at least one of them promptly turned around and
looked up the story on a smartwatch.
The Sixth Amendment “expressly” entitles “a defendant in a
criminal prosecution to a trial ‘by an impartial jury.’” Parse, 789 F.3d at
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110. Similarly, “A fair trial in a fair tribunal is a basic” ingredient of “due
process,” guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment. Id. at 110-11 (citation and
internal quotation marks omitted). A sworn juror who “deliberately” lies
under judicial inquiry not only impairs those integral rights, but “is
subject to criminal prosecution for perjury” and “contempt.” Id. at 111.
Accordingly, a new trial is required when a juror “fail[s] to answer
honestly a material question” and a “correct response would have
provided a valid basis for” dismissal. Greer, 285 F.3d at 170 (citation and
internal quotation marks omitted). And, notably, “bias” and “partiality”
are “presumed” where, as here, jurors “deliberately conceal[] information”
to avoid that fate. Parse, 789 F.3d at 111 [(quoting Colombo, 869 F.2d at
151-52) (juror lied to prevent defense counsel from acting on information
that might lead to her removal)] (emphasis supplied) (alteration and
internal quotation marks omitted).
It follows that intentionally deceiving the Court about exposure to
the most reprehensible outside allegations – and committing crimes
along the way – rendered the offending jurors unfit to serve in Guzman’s
case, furnishing “good cause” to strike them or declare a mistrial and
start afresh. Fed. R. Crim. P. 23(b)(2)(B)-(3). Indeed, an unfit jury, like a
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faulty reasonable doubt charge or a racist tribunal, constitutes a
“structural” defect in the composition of the trial mechanism, vitiating all
the jury’s findings and mandating reversal per se, without a showing of
more tangible harm. See generally, e.g., Weaver v. Ma., 137 S. Ct. 1899,
1907-08 (2017). To put it in fine, a fair trial before unfit jurors is a logical
impossibility and a contradiction in terms. It is simply inconceivable, the
notions being mutually exclusive.
IV.

THE
WHISTLEBLOWING
JUROR
AND
OTHERS
CONCEALED MATERIAL VOIR DIRE INFORMATION
SUPPORTING AT LEAST AN INFERENCE OF BIAS AND
MERITING DISQUALIFICATION FOR CAUSE
“The voir dire of prospective jurors, who have been placed under

oath, ‘is an important method of protecting a defendant’s right to trial by’
jurors who are [fair and] impartial.” Parse, 789 F.3d at 111 (quoting
Colombo, 869 F.2d at 151). As confessed in VICE, the tipster came to the
jury selection process relishing an “histor[ic],” “‘once-in-a-lifetime’”
opportunity to sit in the “‘case of the century’” – if his prohibited
notekeeping is any guide, perhaps because he craved future literary or
commercial engagements. Several questions in the sworn juror
questionnaire distributed before trial – identifying Guzman by popular
nickname, mentioning the Sinaloa Cartel and summarizing the charges
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against him – surely should have elicited the tipster’s ardent wish to
serve. See ECF No. 330 (Sept. 25, 2018).12
To repeat, a new trial is obligatory when “a juror fail[s] to answer
honestly a material question on voir dire” and “a correct response would
have provided a valid basis for a challenge for cause.” Greer, 285 F.3d at
170 (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). “Challenges for
cause are generally based on actual bias, implied bias, or inferable bias.”
Id. at 172 (citing US v. Torres, 128 F.3d 38, 43 (CA2 1997)). And again,
“bias” is “presumed” where, as here, a juror “deliberately conceal[s]
information” for the “purpose of securing a seat on the jury.” Pearse, 789
F.3d at 111 (quoting Colombo, 869 F.2d at 152) (emphasis supplied)
(brackets and internal quotation marks omitted). After all, a mission “so
powerful as to cause the juror to commit a serious crime” – lying “in order
to be chosen as a juror” – intrinsically “reflects an impermissible
partiality on the juror’s part.” Id. (quoting Colombo, 869 F.2d at 151)
(brackets and internal quotation marks omitted). The tipster’s

E.g., Question 53 (“This case involves allegations about a criminal enterprise
commonly known as a drug cartel. Do you have any feelings about serving as a juror
in a case where the defendant has been accused of having connections with a drug
cartel?”); Question 102 (“Is there anything about the nature of the charges or the facts
of the case as they have been explained to you thus far that would affect your ability
to serve as a juror in this case?”).
12

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misconduct in consciously withholding his intense desire to serve thus
compels reversal and retrial.
But there’s more. Other questions in the sworn questionnaire
explicitly asked if prospective jurors could accept, follow and apply the
Court’s “instructions” – specifically including instructions that would
restrict them “solely [to] the evidence in th[e] case” and direct them to
“avoid all media,” “Internet” and “social” networking “coverage.” See ECF
No. 330, Questions 58, 93, 101. It now appears that multiple panelists
answered those questions falsely, betraying inferable if not actual bias
that should have kept them off the jury. E.g., Greer, 285 F.3d at 171
(“[a]ctual bias is bias in fact,” whereas “inferable bias is available when
actual or implied bias does not apply”) (citing Torres, 128 F.3d at 43, 4647).
V.

A FULL AND FAIR HEARING, WITH DEFENSE COUNSEL
ACTIVELY PARTICIPATING, IS NECESSARY TO ENSURE
THE APPEARANCE OF JUSTICE AND PROMOTE PUBLIC
CONFIDENCE IN THE INTEGRITY OF JUDICIAL
PROCEEDINGS
Though judges normally enjoy “broad flexibility” in addressing

claimed jury misconduct, cases involving “media publicity or other
outside influences” constrain their leeway. US v. Thai, 29 F.3d 785, 803
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(CA2 1994) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). The “remedy
for allegations of juror partiality” stemming from outside influence is
thus a “hearing” with prejudice presumed. Smith v. Phillips, 455 U.S.
209, 215 (1982); SUBARGUMENT II; cf. Martha Stewart, 433 F.3d at
306 (“if any significant doubt as to a juror’s impartiality remains in the
wake of objective evidence of false voir dire responses, an evidentiary
hearing generally should be held”) (emphasis supplied).
In that regard, it bears remembering that “both sides have a vital
interest in learning everything there is to know about the matter.” Moten,
582 F.2d at 660. As such, the requisite “exploration should be done not
merely to the government’s satisfaction, or to the satisfaction of the
district judge, but also to the satisfaction of the defendant.” Id. For a
“defendant has a constitutional right to trial by an impartial jury,” and
the “interest of the accused in learning the whole story does not end with
the trial.” Id. at 660-61 (citation omitted). To give those tenets effect, the
“scope of the questioning … should be adequate to permit the entire
picture to be explored,”13 with “all interested parties permitted to

13

Moten, 582 F.2d at 667.

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participate.” Schwarz, 283 F.3d at 98 (citations and internal quotation
marks omitted); see Moten, 582 F.2d at 660 (“no reason to limit”
defendant’s investigation unless “necessary to protect some other
interest”).
Since “each situation in this area is sui generis,”14 courts have
latitude to “decide the extent to which the parties may participate in
questioning the witnesses.” Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 544; see Moten, 582
F.2d at 667 (“We leave to the district judge’s sound discretion whether he
should conduct the questioning personally or whether it should be done
by someone else.”). With Guzman’s case commanding unprecedented
worldwide attention – and intervening revelations clouding “confiden[ce]”
in the Court’s professed “rapport with this jury,” ability to “really look[]
at each” juror individually and “dr[a]w them out,” and belief that they
were heeding their “instructions” and “following my direction[s]”15 – the
“appearance”16 of fairness calls for defense counsel’s examining the

14

Vitale, 459 F.3d at 197 (quoting Moon, 718 F.2d at 1234).

15

T 6945, 6949-50.

16

Vitale, 459 F.3d at 199.

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witnesses personally17 or, at the very least, submitting questions in
writing. E.g., Calbas, 821 F.2d at 894, 897; US v. Greer, 998 F. Supp. 399,
404 (D. Vt. 1998), aff’d in relevant part, rev’d in part on other grounds,
285 F.3d 158 (CA2 2002). We’ll propose potential witnesses and address
whether the hearing should be open or closed upon Waller findings18 at a
future date. See Ianniello, 866 F.2d at 544 (confiding to district court
“discretion” whether to “hold the hearing in camera”).
CONCLUSION
If a justice system’s measure is how it treats the most reviled and
unpopular, then ours may have failed Joaquin Guzman by denying him

E.g., US v. Nix, 275 F. Supp. 3d 420, 428 (WDNY 2017) (counsel “permitted to ask
questions” at posttrial juror misconduct hearing), aff’d on reconsideration, No. 14-CR06181 EAW, 2018 WL 1009282 (WDNY Feb. 20, 2018), app. filed, Nos. 18-619, -625
(CA2 March 5, 2018); Parse, 789 F.3d at 91-92 (defense counsel appears to crossexamine juror on voir dire concealment); US v. Ganias, No. 08 CR 224 (EBB), 2011
WL 4738684, at *3 (D. Conn. Oct. 5, 2011) (defense counsel questioned juror on
undisclosed “bias or predisposition”), aff’d in relevant part, rev’d on other grounds,
755 F.3d 125 (CA2 2014), rev’d on other grounds, 824 F.3d 199 (CA2 2016) (en banc);
US v. Sabhnani, 529 F. Supp. 2d 384, 387 (EDNY 2008) (defendants presented
witness testimony at jury misconduct hearing), aff’d in relevant part, vacated in part
on other grounds, 599 F.3d 215 (CA2 2010); Ida v. US, 207 F. Supp. 2d 171, 175-76
(SDNY 2002) (defendant called witnesses at evidentiary hearing on jury misconduct);
US v. Ianniello, 740 F. Supp. 171, 179-80 (SDNY 1990) (defense counsel examined
witnesses at post-remand jury misconduct hearing), rev’d on other grounds, 937 F.2d
797 (CA2), modified on reh’g, 952 F.2d 623 (CA2), amended, 952 F.2d 624 (CA2 1991),
rev’d on other grounds, 505 US 317 (1992), on remand, 974 F.2d 231 (CA2 1992),
vacated on other grounds, 8 F.3d 909 (CA2 1993) (en banc).
17

18

See Waller v. Ga., 467 U.S. 39 (1984).

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the fair trial before an untainted jury to which he’s constitutionally
entitled. Because sunlight is the best disinfectant, that prospect merits
serious consideration, close investigation and a new trial as appropriate.
See L. Brandeis, Other People’s Money 62 (1933). Where another judge
in the same courthouse threatened criminal referrals and promised to
“‘come down very hard’” on jurors who “‘go on the internet, Twitter, and
ignore their duties’” – and lie about it to a judge’s “face” to boot – anything
less than rigorous scrutiny could create an unsettling appearance of
inequity.19 As the other judge aptly put it, “‘We are here to do justice, not
spread gossip about the defendants on trial.’”20
Dated:

New York, NY
March 26, 2019
Respectfully submitted,
LAW OFFICE OF MARC FERNICH
By:
810 Seventh Ave.
Suite 620
New York, NY 10019

Elizabeth Rosner and Emily Saul, NXIVM Judge Says He’ll Crack the Whip on
Juror Misconduct (Feb. 28, 2019) (El Chapo trial shows that “‘people don’t listen to
judges,’ Garaufis railed”), https://nypost.com/2019/02/28/nxivm-judge-says-hellcrack-the-whip-on-juror-misconduct/ (last visited March 22, 2019).
19

20

Ibid.

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(212) 446-2346
maf@fernichlaw.com
LAW OFFICES OF JEFFREY
LICHTMAN
11 East 44th St.
Suite 501
New York, NY 10017
(212) 581-1001
jhl@jeffreylichtman.com
Attorneys for Joaquin Guzman

25