Some people cannot help but pull their phones out, even if there are possible consequences. Unfortunately, one potential juror in the Young Thug RICO trial has learned the hard way in their quest to go viral.
The potential juror, identified only as “Juror 1004,” was hit with three days behind bars after being caught filming the court proceedings. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution confirmed that the juror is a woman who was seen on March 17th by officials using her cell phone to capture footage of the controversial case. Authorities initially believed she was live streaming the proceedings but later determined it was a video, which she eventually tried to scrub from her device. When officers took her phone, they discovered the clip still inside her “recently deleted” folder, a feature on most iPhones that houses removed images for several days before they are permanently deleted.
The woman confessed to recording but maintained that she was a first-time juror and had no idea she wasn’t allowed to film. However, Chief Judge Ural Glanville slammed this claim during her jail sentencing, assuring that he’d given each juror instructions on what was prohibited in court.
“You put this trial in jeopardy by doing that,” Glanville stated before the juror was placed in handcuffs.
Jury selection began in January 2023 and is still dragging along, with nearly 1,200 prospects being summoned, though none have been seated. Now in its fourth month, this jury selection has become Georgia’s longest in history. When the trial finally gets underway, it is expected to last for months, if not longer.
