Special Prosecutor Appointed to Investigate Rogue Juror in Buju Case

Ever since Buju Banton, one of Jamaica's most talented and controversial reggae singers, was convicted of cocaine trafficking and gun charges in 2011, there have been signs his trial was not on the up-and-up.

You may recall he was sentenced to ten years and lingers in federal lockup. That sentence was allowed to stand even though New Times first disclosed in 2012 that the jury forewoman, Terri Wright, had conducted outside research while the trial was ongoing. That's a violation of court procedures, so 19 months ago, a federal judge ordered the U.S. government to bring criminal contempt charges against Wright.

Virtually nothing happened. But now there's movement. A special prosecutor from outside the U.S. Department of Justice has been tasked with leading the case against the rogue juror and plans to meet with Banton's legal team, Wright, and the feds.

Though no one on the government end is talking much, the appointment of a special prosecutor in such a situation is significant. Such prosecutors are typically reserved for investigating government officials.

So is there a wider probe into potential misconduct that could move Banton a step closer to freedom?

"I hope," says defense attorney Charles Ogletree, who heads Harvard Law School's Institute for Race and Justice. He has been representing Banton (real name Mark Myrie) for the past year. "Here we have a wildcat juror, somebody who's going way beyond their authority and doing things that were completely inappropriate. This undermined the search for truth, which resulted, I think, in the conviction of [Banton]."

Wright's misdeeds extend far beyond doing internet research during the trial. She appears to have lied on several occasions, including during jury selection for Banton's trial, when she told the court she had served in only one previous trial. In reality she had served in seven.

Moreover, when the judge ordered Wright to turn over her computer for forensic analysis, Wright submitted a bogus hard drive. It was in the wake of this deception that the judge called for the contempt charges.

Lost in all of this mess is that Banton remains locked up. It has been six years since he was arrested. He has been through two trials -- the first ended in a hung jury and the second was corrupted by Wright. He has served more jail time than the men who were actually at the scene of the crime with stacks of cash and a gun trying to buy cocaine. (He was far away when the bust happened.)

The criminal informant who built the case against Buju had been deemed untrustworthy by a previous judge and had financial incentive to bend the truth in favor of the prosecution. One-third of the jurors have even admitted to New Times that they did not want to find the singer guilty on the gun charge, which carries a five-year sentence.

It's the jury forewoman's actions that most disturb Harvard's Ogletree, though. "What Terri Wright did is contrary to everything that anyone knows about jury trials," he says. "Jurors... take an oath, and they need to follow it."

Banton's case remains under review by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, where Ogletree recently presented an oral argument centering largely on all the unknowns surrounding Wright. Two weeks ago, the panel requested that all 11 judges of the court review the case. Another hearing is expected this spring.

"We have all the evidence going in our direction," Ogletree says. "We're ready."

See also: http://bujutrial.blogspot.fi/2012/02/buju-banton-is-innocent-full-story.html

Source: http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2015/02/buju_banton_case_special_prosecutor_appointed_to_investigate_rogue_juror.php

Feds won't file contempt charge against juror in Jamaican reggae singer's drug trial

TAMPA, Florida
Federal prosecutors in Tampa won't file a criminal contempt charge against a juror in Jamaican reggae singer Buju Banton's 2011 drug trafficking trial.

U.S. District Judge James Moody said in June that jury foreman Terri Wright should face charges for doing independent research into the case during trial.

In court documents filed Wednesday, prosecutors said they planned to oppose Banton's latest appeal and could not prosecute Wright simultaneously. They suggested that the court appoint another prosecutor to pursue charges against Wright.

Banton is serving a 10-year sentence for convictions on cocaine conspiracy and trafficking charges stemming from a 2009 arrest.

Banton's attorneys have sought to withdraw from the case. Chokwe Lumumba was elected mayor of Jackson, Miss., last month, and Imhotep Alkebu-lan became special assistant to that city's attorney.


Source: http://www.wptv.com/dpp/news/state/buju-banton-feds-wont-file-contempt-charge-against-juror-in-jamaican-reggae-singers-drug-trial

Buju Banton Weighs His Options

Photo: Riina Asamoa

Reggae superstar Buju Banton is now weighing his options after a Florida federal judge, yesterday, threw out the gun possession charge arising from his drug conviction two years ago.

However, Imhotep Alkebu-Lan, co-counsellor for the embattled reggae star, real name Mark Myrie told media Buju has 14 days to decide his next move.

Buju was in court seeking a new trial based on allegations that jury fore-woman Teri Wright violated the judge's orders in his February 2011 drug trial.

US District Court Judge, James S. Moody Jr, allowed Buju's conviction to stand but threw out the gun conviction which would have given the artiste an additional five years in prison.

"He (Buju) is now in the deliberation phase and is weighing his options to decide his next move," said Alkebu-Lan.

Moody also instructed prosecutors to bring contempt charges against Wright after accepting she did independent research and also provided the court with an incorrect hard drive for examination.

Compromised decision

The judge found that Wright discussed her findings from the independent research with other jurors, but that it was not possible to say if that had influenced the jury's decisions.

This information came to light after she did a newspaper interview in October 2012.

A computer forensics expert later testified that the hard drive that Wright submitted came from a desktop computer that sat idle from May 2010 to June 2011, a time frame that included the trial and its aftermath.

If found guilty, Wright could face fines and up to six months in prison.

Alkebu-Lan said Banton and his team had 14 days to make an appeal, whilst the prosecutors had 30

Source: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20130627/ent/ent2.html

Buju Banton Returns To Court On June 26

Incarcerated reggae star Buju Banton will have his day in court on June 26, 2013.

Federal Judge James Moody Jr. has ordered the Grammy-winning singer, as well as, embattled juror Teri Wright to appeared in court on the same day in relation to the ongoing juror misconduct case.

Buju Banton and his legal team, headed by Chokwe Lumumba, are requesting a new trial on the grounds of a juror misconduct.

Teri Wright, who helped put Buju Banton behind bars for 10 years, told a South Florida journalist last year that she researched aspects of the case during the trial.

However, a massive dent was dealt to Buju Banton case against the juror last month when a computer expert found no trace of research on her computer hard drive.

Banton’s lawyers, however, said she turned over the wrong hard drive.

Buju Banton, real name Mark Myrie, is currently serving a 10-year sentence in a Florida prison after being convicted for drug trafficking. He is also facing an additional five years for a gun charge that was previously thrown out.

Judge James Moody is expected to hand down a ruling on June 26.

Source: http://urbanislandz.com/2013/04/18/buju-banton-returns-to-court-on-june-26/

Buju gets another lifeline

REGGAE artiste Buju Banton was handed another lifeline yesterday after it was revealed that embattled juror Teri Wright had submitted the wrong computer hard drive for examination by a computer forensic expert hired by him to examine if she had studied aspects of the law involving his drug traffick-ing case during his second trial in February 2011.

Banton's attorney Kwame Lumumba told the Jamaica Observer yesterday that Wright had indicated to the court, during an earlier sitting, that she had used a laptop computer, but the expert had found that she in fact submitted the hard drive for an old desktop computer.

"Her attorney stated in court that she surrendered the hard drive of a laptop computer. She said she did research on the case three weeks after the trial. The expert found no evidence that she did any research at all on that hard drive and found that it was not the hard drive of a laptop but the hard drive of a desktop. We are of the firm opinion that she did not submit the hard drive for a laptop computer," Lumumba said.

Wright had reportedly told a reporter that she studied aspects of the Pinkerton Law which was used to convict Banton on a firearm charge.
He faces an additional five years after an Appeals Court threw out a motion to have his sentence overturned.

He also pointed to other inconsistencies in Wright's statements during jury selection for the trial.
"It was also revealed that she had served on seven juries, but she said she only served on one jury in a civil matter. She is a seasoned juror. If his lawyer (who was then David Markus) had known that, she would have been rejected. She changed the syntax of her statement because at first she said she served on juries then changed and said jury. It was very misleading," said the lawyer.
The revelation has prompted Lumumba to file a motion asking US Judge James Moody to make a ruling that Wright had violated his orders.

If the court rules in favour of Banton, it would open the way for a new trial for the entertainer who is serving a 10-year sentence after being found guilty of drug-related charges. He is currently languishing in the Pinellas County Jail in Tampa, Florida until the matter is sorted out by the US Sam Gibbons Court in the same city.

"A new trial, that is what we are asking for," said Banton's lawyer.

Lumumba said the ruling could be handed down in two weeks as his client has been incarcerated and was uncertain of his future.

Banton, whose real name is Mark Myrie, would then undergo a third trial to prove his innocence and if he is successful he could seek damages for wrongful imprisonment and loss of earnings. He could also argue that his right to travel to the United States and work, which has been taken away by the US authorities, be reinstated.

"If we are successful it does raise certain questions if he will pursue a civil suit," he said.

The Jamaican entertainer was arrested at his Tamarac, South Florida home in December 2009 after US Drug Enforcement Agents arrested two men — James Mack and Ian Thomas — in a government-controlled warehouse in Tampa as they attempted to purchase a large quantity of cocaine from undercover police.

Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Buju-gets-another-lifeline_13999170#ixzz2PawanxI2

Judge to order search of former juror's hard drive in Buju Banton case

A Florida federal judge is to order a juror to hand over her computer hard drive for a forensic search by an expert as international reggae star Buju Banton seeks a new trial. 

The matter came up in court yesterday. According to the Tampa Bay Times, US District Court Judge James Moody said he would allow a defense computer forensics expert to make a copy of the hard drive belonging to Terri Wright, who was the jury foreman at the trial. 

Buju’s attorneys are accusing Wright of violating court rules when she alleged researched information on the Jamaican entertainer during the trial. The judge reportedly ordered that the expert could only release information about the alleged research to attorneys and that all other material should be kept private. 

Wright has denied the allegation saying she conducted research only after the case had ended. Buju’s attorneys want his 2011 drug conviction to be overturned and a retrial ordered. Buju, whose real name is Mark Myrie, is serving a 10-year prison term on his drug conviction.

Source: http://go-jamaica.com/news/read_article.php?id=42991

Buju gets another date in court

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Reggae artiste Buju Banton has been granted a right to an evidentiary hearing by US magistrate James Moody.

Buju will be taken before the US Sam Gibbons Court in Tampa, Florida on December 20.

The court is to look into an admission by female juror, Terri Wright, that she violated federal regulations and researched aspects of the case over the Internet during the trial in order to have a better grasp of the issues.

Wright said she had secretly researched the Pinkerton Law, which was used by the prosecution to connect Buju to an illegal firearm that was found in the possession of a co-conspirator, James Mack, during a cocaine transaction in a police-controlled warehouse in Tampa.

Along with Wright, three other jurors will appear before the court at the December hearing.
Banton was given a 10-year sentence for drug related charges and missed being slapped with an additional five years on a gun conviction. The recommended for an additional five years by an Appellate Court came after two motions filed by his newly appointed legal team that he should be granted a new trial. The first motion was for the judge to reconsider his prior sentence and reduce it. The second motion was for a new trial based on jury misconduct.

Yesterday lead attorney Chokwe Lumumba told the Jamaica Observer that the ruling was a fillip to his client’s case. “It means we can demonstrate that the juror was guilty of misconduct and they should grant a mistrial,” Lumumba said.


Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Buju-gets-another-day-in-court

Buju Banton Granted Evidentiary Hearing

Embattled dancehall star Buju Banton got a major break in his ongoing case last week when a judge granted him an evidentiary hearing.

The hearing comes just weeks after Buju’s lawyer, Chokwe Lumumba, and his defense support committee files an application after learning that one of the jurors violates court orders.

The hearing is scheduled to take place at the Sam M. Gibbons Federal Court in Tampa, Florida on December 20th.

Four of the jurors involved in the infamous trial will answer to the court during that hearing.

Last month, juror Terri Wright admitted in an interview that she researched aspects of the case on her computer before reaching a verdict. If that turns out to be true, the judge could rule in favour of a mistrial.

Wright said her research of the case did not influence her decision.

Buju Banton, born Mark Myrie, is currently serving a 10-year sentence in a Florida prison after being convicted in February of three counts of drug trafficking charges.

The Grammy-winning singer is also facing an additional five years on a gun charge.

Source: http://urbanislandz.com/2012/11/19/buju-banton-granted-evidentiary-hearing/