When empaneled jurors make social media posts during a trial, they risk opening Pandora’s box—a recurrent issue in courtrooms throughout the United States and in many foreign countries.
The current case of a woman called “Juror X” in a Cincinnati federal court illustrates how jurors invite scrutiny and possibly jeopardize a verdict when they choose to make online trial-related statements, in possible violations of court rules that seek to insulate jurors from influences outside the courtroom.