Tweeting at trial amongst jury members isn’t as big a problem as one might guess, according to a survey of U.S. district judges conducted by the Federal Judicial Center. Of the 494 respondents, only 33 said they had ever detected problematic social media use within the jury.
The results indicated jurors access social media and blogs more often than forms of instant messaging, while a handful divulged confidential information about a case over it. Judges said they learned about inappropriate social media use from other jurors, court staff or attorneys. The most common way of warding off such behavior is explaining in plain language why it’s banned, said the judges. Jurors were mostly penalized by being cautioned, removed from the jury or dealt with post-trial, but one judge interviewed held a juror in contempt of court.
