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Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
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Kaplony Offline
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Post: #1
Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
http://nypost.com/2014/07/28/murder-verd...nd-a-seat/

Quote:Meet Daniel Floyd — the luckiest “killer” in New York.

The 23-year-old Brooklyn man was tried, convicted and — after the jury found he shot a rival dead at a dice game — sent to prison for 15 years to life. But the state’s highest court overturned the guilty verdict — all because Floyd’s mother couldn’t find a seat in the courtroom during jury selection.

A juror who voted to convict Floyd was shocked to learn of the stunning reversal.

“On a technicality like there was no room in the courtroom! That’s something new for me. I don’t think that’s right,” said the woman, who didn’t want her name used.

“Oh my gosh! This is very surprising, boy, because I didn’t know people could get off once they were convicted,” the 65-year-old public-school teacher said.

Quote:“It’s very frustrating,” said Linda Dixon Hill, whose son, Leon Hill, was gunned down in the March 9, 2008, gambling dispute.

“He was found guilty by a jury [and then] the Court of Appeals overturned it,” she said sadly, adding that Leon’s daughter was 4 months old when he was killed. She is now 6.

Floyd’s conviction was tossed in an April 25, 2013, decision based on his trial lawyer’s complaint to Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge Michael Gary that Melissa Floyd was forced to wait outside a courtroom that was packed with potential jurors.

“Defense counsel observed, ‘Certainly, as a public spectator, she has an absolute right to be present,’ ” the decision states. “Defendants have a constitutional right to a ‘public trial,’ ” the decision goes on, adding that overcrowding does not justify courtroom closure.

“This violation . . . requires a new trial,” the judges ruled.

On his initial appeal, the Appellate Division had found Gary’s offer to get a seat for Floyd’s mom once some juror candidates had been weeded out was sufficient — and upheld the conviction. But the higher court disagreed.

Melissa Floyd declined to comment as she left court. But jurors who convicted her son were shocked to hear of the judicial U-turn.

Quote:Floyd and Hill argued over money on the dice table. Floyd stormed out and returned 20 minutes later, according to court papers — and allegedly fired a fatal shot into Hill’s neck.

Unreal
07-29-2014 11:33 AM
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DrTorch Offline
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Post: #2
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
We clearly need new judges.
07-29-2014 12:22 PM
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Native Georgian Online
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Post: #3
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
Not too often, but Gov. Cuomo occasionally expresses a sane opinion on issues like this. Now would be a good time for him to do so.
07-29-2014 12:26 PM
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Smaug Offline
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Post: #4
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
The stupid. It burns.
07-29-2014 12:46 PM
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SumOfAllFears Offline
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Post: #5
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
Is not having your mother in the courtroom for jury selection even a legal issue?
07-29-2014 01:45 PM
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Smaug Offline
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Post: #6
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
(07-29-2014 01:45 PM)SumOfAllFears Wrote:  Is not having your mother in the courtroom for jury selection even a legal issue?

Apparently.
07-29-2014 01:46 PM
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CliftonAve Online
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Post: #7
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
I am guessing the attorney argued a US Supreme Court case (Presley v. Georgia) which ruled the trial courts are obligated to take every reasonable to accomodate public attendance at criminal trials.

In the Presley case the judge prohibited the defendants mother and father from entering the courtroom during voir dire because there were only enough seats for the jury pool. The Supreme Court's ruling was an interpretation of the Sixth Amendment right to a public trial.
07-29-2014 02:10 PM
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GrayBeard Offline
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Post: #8
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
Is this for real, or is the journalist woefully misinformed?
07-29-2014 02:13 PM
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TigerBlue4Ever Online
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Post: #9
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
Something about hell in a hand-basket comes to mind.
07-29-2014 03:31 PM
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SuperFlyBCat Offline
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Post: #10
RE: Murder verdict tossed because his mom couldn’t find a seat
That technicality is the mother of all BS. Guy is still in jail.
07-29-2014 04:00 PM
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