Just one day into the multi-week trial on May 5, an unidentified female juror indicated to Justice Glen Poelman she was no longer able to remain impartial in the case.
In a letter she sent to the Court of Queen’s Bench judge, read into the court record by him, the juror explained she couldn’t go on after hearing Crown lawyer Marlo MacGregor outlining the prosecution’s case the previous day.
“I was presented with information the evening of May 4, 2016, which I feel directly impacts my ability to act as a jury member on this case with an unbiased opinion,” the juror said in her note to Poelman.
“I have a gift of being an intuitive and medium, and although I did not believe this gift would impact my ability to provide judgment on this case based solely on the facts presented before me in court … I am wrong,” she said.
The unnamed woman then told Poelman she could explain to him what a medium is if he wished.
“I can describe it as the ability to see, hear, feel, sense those that have died or whom are about to be born,” she said, before explaining what occurred to impact her impartiality.
“Last night the deceased presented himself to me and made me feel what he went through as he was being killed, the intensity of his injuries, and the location of his wounds,” she said.
“He also showed me information relating to those who beat, stabbed, and kicked him.
“I cannot get those horrible images out of my mind. I feel what he felt,” she explained.
“I hear what he heard. He kept repeating the phrase ‘I’m sorry, I am so sorry, please tell my family I am sorry.'”
The woman then explained she wasn’t asking Poelman to believe in the paranormal.
“Sir, I am not asking that you believe in what I experienced last night, but I ask that you believe in how this has affected me on a personal, mental, and physical level,” she said.
“It was, and never has been, my intention to retract my ability to fulfil the juror role or come into court with a bias, but at this point I feel I can no longer act as a member of this jury fairly and without bias towards the accused,” she said.
With the agreement of counsel, Poelman excused the woman from further service.
Charged with second-degree murder in Strasser-Hird’s Nov. 23, 2013, slaying are Franz Cabrera, Jordan Liao, Joch Pouk and Assmar Shlah.
The remaining jurors are now deliberating the case.
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