Juror in Polo Mogul's Retrial Violated Computer Rule

Juror No. 3 is accused of sneaking a laptop into his hotel room.

ByABC News
October 21, 2014, 9:16 AM

— -- A juror in the retrial of polo mogul John Goodman was sequestered Monday, caught violating a strict rule against unsupervised computer use.

Juror No. 3 was accused of sneaking a laptop into his hotel room. He visited Bleacherreport.com and Fantasy Football at Yahoo.com, according to the juror.

Judge Jeffrey Colbath isn’t buying the story.

“It may be that he’s being disingenuous when he says, ‘The computer just magically appeared in my room,’” Colbath said.

Despite the juror’s violation, the prosecution and defense are allowing him to continue on the DUI manslaughter case.

This is the second trial for the multimillionaire, who was convicted in 2012 for the death of Scott Wilson, 23, and sentenced to 16 years behind bars. But that verdict was thrown out because of juror misconduct.

Prosecutors say Goodman’s blood-alcohol level was 0.177, more than twice the legal limit to drive at the time of the crash.

Goodman has pleaded not guilty, with his lawyers insisting he was not impaired at the time of the accident, and that his brakes failed.

Facundo Paredes, the valet at the bar where Goodman had been drinking, testified Monday that Goodman didn’t seem impaired when he handed him the keys.

But forensic toxicologist Dustin Tate Yeatman told the court it’s possible Goodman was intoxicated.

“Someone who drinks alcohol on a daily basis could potentially have a significant tolerance,” Yeatman said.