Community payback for Juror who googled court case
A juror found in contempt of court for googling about the case he was trying was today told by a judge that he had attacked the system of justice.
A juror found in contempt of court for googling about the case he was trying was today told by a judge that he had attacked the system of justice. Martin Greig escaped a jail sentence, but was ordered by Judge Johanna Johnston QC to perform 170 hours unpaid work in the community. Judge Johnston told Greig that his actions were “extremely foolish,” and said: “You put yourself close to a situation where you could have gone to custody.” Judge Johnston added: “If you had put the trial off, the reality is it would have been a very difficult job to persuade me not to jail you. By good fortune you didn't reveal anything that damaged the course of justice.” At the High Court in Glasgow it was revealed that Greig, who was serving on a jury at the High Court at Aberdeen, had gone on social media to search for articles relating to the case. He then told his fellow jurors what he had done, but did not reveal any details to them. They immediately reported the matter to the court authorities. The trial was halted for a day, but then carried on without Greig, who was described in court as self-employed. Father-of-two Greig did this despite Judge Johnston repeatedly telling the jurors not to search on social media and only rely on evidence heard in court. He has since apologised to the court. Defence counsel David Nicolson said: “He knew that he was not to go on any social media, but says he wasn't aware of the consequences. He accepts he was told at least twice not to do it. He disrupted the business of the court that day and into the following day. He now appreciates how serious that was.” Greig was ordered to carry out the unpaid work within six months.