"Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Mermelstein had reminded Wood during oral arguments last month that Heicklin also has regularly distributed pamphlets in front of federal courthouses in Philadelphia, Boston, Tampa, Fla., Alexandria, Va., Concord, N.H., Springfield, Mass., Hartford, Conn., and Albany and White Plains in New York state. She called him a "significant threat" to the integrity of the judicial system.
"Wood wrote that Heicklen did not violate the law by handing out pamphlets discussing the role of juries in society and urging jurors to follow their consciences regardless of instructions on the law. She said the law would be violated only if Heicklen tried to influence the action or decision of a juror on a specific case pending before that juror.
"The court's holding merely maintains the existing balance that federal courts have found between freedom of speech and the administration of justice," Wood said. "Attempts to tamper with a jury in order to influence the outcome of a trial or a grand jury proceeding are still clearly prohibited."
Rest at link.
The judge's name rang a bell with me: Judge Kimba Wood -- one Bill Clinton's nominations who withdrew because she hired an illegal alien as a nanny.
For those who would like to learn about "fully informed juries", go to: www.http://devvy.net/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi/r/alerts/929103514428/
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