'I’m in big trouble', says juror as PSNI investigates their online comments on Belfast rape trial
Police in the North are investigating online comments by one of the jurors in the Belfast rape trial.
The comments on Broadsheet.ie on Wednesday afternoon refer to the acquittals of two rugby players and their friends.
Just seven hours after the jury cleared Paddy Jackson, Stuart Olding, Blane McIlroy and Rory Harrison of all charges relating to a teenage girl, one of its members went online to talk about the case.
The Irish Times says the first comment appeared at 8.26pm.
The posts explained the reasons the jury had come to its unanimous verdict, why deliberations took less than four hours and he answered questions from other users.
The paper claims it has spoken to the juror who feared he was about to be arrested.
The incident has been referred to the Lord Chief Justice, the North's most senior judge, and the comments have been taken down.
The juror last night told The Irish Times that none of their comments were connected to jury deliberations, and so claimed that they did not breach the judge’s order.
However, the juror also said they had been ordered to remove the comments by the Lord Chief Justice’s office, after which the juror contacted the website, which took them down.
The juror also told the Irish Times: “I’m in big trouble,” after they were asked by the Lord Chief Justice’s office whether they had a solicitor.
The juror said: “I’m sitting here in the kitchen waiting for the cops to arrive, two PSNI constables to arrive and I’m going to be handcuffed away and all I’ve done is just, I made a posting about, this is why there was a return of not guilty.
“When we were all discharged, the 11 of us, the only thing the judge said was, ‘Do you know what, go about your everyday life, whatever, business as usual, but don’t reveal discussions within the jury room,’ and none of that was like part of anything I have said.”
