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Juror Has A Close Relationship With Attorney:
THE ADVOCATE Volume 30, No.1 January 2008
• Prospective and actual jurors who had previously been represented by the prosecutor and who
stated they would seek out such representation in the future (although attorney/client relationship
does not automatically disqualify a juror). Fugate v. Commonwealth, 993 S.W.2d 931, 938
(Ky.1999), Riddle v. Commonwealth, 864 S.W.2d 308 (Ky.1993).
• Juror knew both the Commonwealth Attorney and the chief investigating officer in the crime.
Thompson v. Commonwealth, 862 S.W.2d 871, 875 (Ky.1993).
• Juror had business dealings with the prosecution. Thompson v. Commonwealth, 862 S.W.2d
871, 875 (Ky.1993).
• Juror’s wife and the prosecutor were first cousins by marriage (however, relationship by blood
and affinity are treated the same for purposes of juror disqualification). Thomas v. Commonwealth,
864 S.W.2d 252, 256-7 (Ky.1993).
• Uncle of the Commonwealth Attorney. Ward v. Commonwealth, 695 S.W.2d 404, 407 (Ky.1985).
• Secretary of the Commonwealth Attorney. Position gave rise to a loyalty to employer that would
imply bias. Randolph v. Commonwealth, 716 S.W.2d 3 (Ky.1986), overruled on other grounds.
• Manager of an ambulance service, which had a contract with the Ambulance Board for which the
prosecutor was the attorney, and who had been asked as manager of the Ambulance Board to
participate in the search for the defendants (who were charged with escape) and who had been
held hostage in a previous escape. Montgomery v. Commonwealth, 819 S.W.2d 713 (1992).
• County attorney at the time of the defendant’s preliminary hearing. Godsey v. Commonwealth,
661 S.W.2d 2 (Ky.App.1983).
• Juror was being represented by the prosecutor on a legal matter at the time of trial. Montgomery
v. Commonwealth, 819 S.W.2d 713 (Ky.1992).
• Prosecutor was cousin’s son-in-law. Montgomery v. Commonwealth, 819 S.W.2d 713 (Ky.1992).
• But see Sholler v. Commonwealth, 969 S.W.2d 706, 709 (Ky.1998), wherein the trial court did not
abuse its discretion in refusing to dismiss for cause a potential juror who knew the Commonwealth
attorney through mutual friends and their mutual membership in a large card club.
Juror Has Other Biases:
• Where the defendant, on trial for sexual crimes against his seven year-old daughter, is black, his
wife is white, and their child is biracial, a juror who expressed a distaste for “mixed marriages,”
and stated he would judge the wife’s credibility a degree differently than he would judge the
credibility of other witnesses, should have been excused for cause. Alexander v. Commonwealth,
862 S.W.2d 856, 864 (Ky.1993), overruled on other grounds.
• Where juror stated (1) he was racially biased, (2) he left his neighborhood because young black
men were hanging around in the area, (3) when he walked into the courtroom, he assumed
Appellant was the accused because of the color of his skin, and (4) he was opposed to, in fact
offended by, inter-racial relationships, he should have been excused for cause. Gamble v.
Commonwealth, 68 S.W.3d 367, 373 (Ky.2002).
• Jurors related to prison employees, who knew many prison employees, whose two best friends
and two brothers worked at the prison, and had discussed the case with their brothers should
have been struck for cause. Thompson v. Commonwealth, 862 S.W.2d 871, 875 (Ky.1993).
• Former police officer and present deputy sheriff. Montgomery v. Commonwealth, 819 S.W.2d
713 (Ky.1992). But see Sholler v. Commonwealth, 969 S.W.2d 706, 708 (Ky.1998), where the court
reaffirmed the principle espoused in Sanders v. Commonwealth, 884 S.W.2d 665 (Ky.1990), cert.
denied, 502 U.S. 831, 112 S.Ct. 107, 116 L.Ed.2d 76 (1991), which held that police officers are not
disqualified per se to serve as jurors in criminal cases.
• Employee of the prison from which defendants escaped and who acknowledged he would give
more credibility to a law enforcement officer’s testimony and would feel “bad” about acquitting
the defendants if proof was not sufficient to show guilt. Montgomery v. Commonwealth, 819
S.W.2d 713 (Ky.1992).
• Outside patrolman and guard for a prison who acknowledged he had spoken with persons in the
prison regarding the escape. Montgomery v. Commonwealth, 819 S.W.2d 713 (Ky.1992).
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