NEW YORK _ The Brooklyn jury who last week convicted Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera on all charges _ all but securing him a life spent in solitary confinement _ struggled with the decision to do so, and many of them closely followed media coverage of the case despite repeated warnings not to, according to one of the jurors.
"A lot of people were having difficulty thinking about him being in solitary confinement, because, well, you know, we're all human beings, people make mistakes, et cetera," the anonymous juror told Vice News in an interview published Wednesday.
"The judge said, 'You can't talk about the case among each other,' but we broke that rule a bunch of times."
One person on the jury reportedly checked news coverage on a smartwatch while inside the courthouse, where cellphones and other devices are banned, after U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan met with jurors privately to see if they had seen any media coverage over the weekend.
Cogan regularly admonished jurors regarding the importance of avoiding news coverage during the 12-week trial, sometimes multiple times a day.
If it can be proven the jury disregarded the court's instructions to stay away from news about the case, Guzman's lawyers could seek a new trial.
Eduardo Balarezo, Guzman's attorney, posted the bombshell story on Twitter shortly after it was published, indicating the Mexican kingpin's defense team may file a motion to set aside the guilty verdict.
The identities of the partially sequestered 12 jurors and six alternates _ residents of Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island _ remained secret throughout the trial as a safety precaution.
Cogan told them they were free to talk about the case after they reached a verdict.
Guzman is alleged to have tampered with the judicial system in his native country on multiple occasions. A federal judge in Mexico who oversaw a number of his appeals was executed while out jogging in 2016.
Guzman was found guilty of leading the notorious Sinaloa Cartel, international drug trafficking, murder conspiracy and other related charges on Feb.12. His sentencing date is scheduled for June 25.
