Jury In 2nd Oregon Standoff Trial Will Remain Anonymous

U.S. District Court Judge Anna Brown said Friday she will keep the identities of jurors anonymous for the second Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation trial. Defendants Jason Patrick, Duane Ehmer, Dylan Anderson, Sean Anderson, Sandy Anderson, Darryl Thorn and Jake Ryan are scheduled to go to trial Feb. 14. In her order, Brown said her experience with the first trial and others throughout her career guided her decision. “Based on 25 years of experience as a trial judge, this Court finds if jurors’ names and personally-identifiable information are publicly disclosed, there is an unacceptable, continuous, and significant risk that jurors will be contacted,” Brown wrote. She said that such contact has the potential to compromise the jurors’ ability to make a decision on the case without being subjected to “external information and influences.”...more