A juror in the murder trial of multimillionaire Robert Durst was removed because she read about the case, a violation of the court’s order, during a long hiatus.
Judge Mark Windham announced he was removing the juror after she admitted to reading about the defense attorneys’ requests for a mistrial, according to the Associated Press.
The judge said the juror “took umbrage” that defense attorneys sought a mistrial because they felt jurors might have forgotten what they heard 14 months ago when the case was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Windham also jokingly acknowledged the extended hiatus from the trial, saying, “Where did we leave off?”
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Durst, 78, is an heir to a New York commercial real estate empire who was arrested in March 2015 and charged with first-degree murder in the killing of his friend, Susan Berman. His trial resumed on Monday after a 14-month recess with arguments about whether the case should continue.
Berman was shot and killed in her Los Angeles home in December 2000. Durst has pleaded not guilty.
Removal of the juror comes as attorneys are preparing to present a new round of opening statements in Los Angeles County Superior Court, due to the unusual length of time jurors have been absent from the panel, which contains 20 jurors, as well as eight alternates.
The judge convened with jurors one day before the trial resumed to see if they could continue their duties after the unprecedented delay.
Durst returned to court on Tuesday after being absent on Monday, citing health reasons. Windham denied a defense request Monday to postpone the case further because of health issues, including bladder cancer, that require hospitalization.
Deputy District Attorney John Lewin called the defense’s claims a “get-out-of-jail-free card,” adding that the defendant was receiving high-quality care in jail and that Durst’s goal was “simply to have this trial go away.”
Defense attorney Dick DeGuerin for Durst argued his client’s health is in such dire straits that the “question isn’t whether he can endure the rigors of the trial, it’s whether he can survive at all.”
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The Washington Examiner contacted the Los Angeles County Superior Court but did not immediately receive a response.
