DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — Colorado's second-highest court last week reversed a man's sexual assault convictions because a Douglas County judge allowed a biased juror to serve.
Jurors convicted Dennis Floyd Ladd of multiple sex offenses in 2022 and he received an indefinite sentence of at least 25 years. During jury selection, his lawyer asked the jury pool if they would hold it against Ladd if he chose to exercise his constitutional right not to testify.
One person said it "makes it look really questionable" if Ladd remained silent. Another juror, identified as Juror T, acknowledged he was not permitted to infer Ladd's guilt if Ladd did not tell his side of the story.
However, "I think if I had to lean one direction or another, it’s not neutral," Juror T continued. "You know, there’s a small — it would create a small gray area for me."
"When you say gray area, do you mean like an inference of guilt?" the defense attorney asked.
"Yeah," said Juror T. He elaborated that if he caught his two kids fighting in the living room and only one told him what had happened, he would "lean" towards the testifying child.
> Read the full story at Colorado Politics.
