Opinion
Case No. 4:01 CR 207
March 13, 2002
ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT'S MOTION REGARDING JUROR QUESTIONNAIRES AND LOCAL CRIMINAL RULE 24.1
Before the Court is Defendant Traficant's Motion for Conclusive Ruling Relative to Rule 24.1 of the Local Rules of the Northern District of Ohio. (Docket # 186). The defendant apparently seeks an interpretation of the rule and requests this Court to "ask for a hearing with the Chief Judge or the full body of the Northern District of Ohio Judges relative to the juror questionnaires" used in this case. (Docket # 186).
The Court, in this case, used a two-staged voir dire. First, prospective jurors completed juror questionnaires, which contained many questions that would otherwise have been asked orally by the Court. Then, the Court conducted a traditional oral inquiry. In a case such as this one, which involves a large jury pool, questionnaires conserve court, private, and public resources insofar as many, here more than 100, potential jurors can simultaneously respond to a large number of questions.
Defendant Traficant presents two concerns: (1) that the Court's decision to make the completed juror questionnaires available to the press violates Local Criminal Rule 24.1; and (2) that such availability is in conflict with the Court's admonition to jurors and prospective jurors to refrain from reading, listening, or watching anything about this case.
The Court's decision to make the completed juror questionnaires available to the press does not violate Local Criminal Rule 24.1. Rule 24.1(d) states, in relevant part, "Questionnaires will be available to counsel for the limited purpose of assisting their preparation for voir dire. They are not otherwise to be used, copied, or disclosed without Court order." Nothing in this rule prohibits the Court itself from disclosing the questionnaires to the press.
If the questions contained in the questionnaires had been asked as part of the oral voir dire, the proceeding, of course, would be open to the public and press and the public and press would hear the answers to each question. Disclosure of the juror questionnaires to the media guarantees that the entire voir dire portion of the trial is open to the public, regardless of whether or not juror questionnaires are used. This ensures that the defendant receives a fair and public trial, to which he is entitled under the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
The availability of the juror questionnaires to the press does not conflict with the Court's admonitions to jurors and prospective jurors to refrain from reading, listening, or watching anything about this case. The admonitions serve to ensure that the jury is protected from outside influences and information, but do not in any way imply that the general public or press should not have access to information contained in the voir dire questionnaires. To the contrary, the parties' rights to a fair trial require that, except in extraordinary circumstances not present here, all stages of the trial be open to the public and press.
Accordingly, Defendant Traficant's request that this Court "ask for a hearing with the Chief Judge or the full body of the Northern District of Ohio Judges relative to the juror questionnaires" used in this case is denied.
IT IS SO ORDERED.