Fed Judge Rips Juror in Bobby Ferguson Trial for Speaking Out

So much for transparency in the court system.

In a highly unusual move, a federal judge in Detroit ripped into a juror in the Bobby Ferguson bid-rigging case for speaking publicly about the deliberations that ended in a deadlock, leading the judge to declare a mistrial.

Robert Snell of The Detroit News reports that U.S. District Judge David Lawson sent a letter to juror Leon Richey on June 28 chastising him for speaking out, a day after he told the News that the jury had voted 10-1 to convict Ferguson before deadlocking 10-1 in favor of conviction.

Lawson told Richey that his public statements could complicate the upcoming retrial for Ferguson and two of his co-defendants.

Richey, a substitute teacher, told the News: "I didn't like the tone of the judge's note; I think it was off base. The note was condescending. I want him to retract it."