A THIRD juror is dismissed from Elizabeth Holmes’ trial after admitting to playing Soduku during testimony: Fellow panelist tipped off judge in Theranos fraud case
- The female juror got the boot after it was discovered she kept Sudoku in a court-issued notebook and played the game for up to ten days of court testimony
- U.S. District Court Judge Edward Davila questioned juror No. 5 in his chambers on Friday after being tipped off by a fellow juror via email
- According to court transcripts, the juror said she played the game to help her focus
- This comes after a Buddhist juror was dismissed because if Holmes were found guilty and sent to prison for a ‘long, long time’ she would ‘feel like it’s my fault’
A third juror has been dismissed from Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes fraud trial after admitting to playing Sudoku during trial testimony.
The female juror got the boot after it was discovered she kept Sudoku in a court-issued notebook and fiddled with the puzzle for up to ten days of court testimony, CNBC.com reported.
U.S. District Court Judge Edward Davila questioned juror No. 5 in his chambers on Friday after being tipped off by a fellow juror via email.
Elizabeth Holmes (pictured) has been on trial for charges of fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud
According to court transcripts, the juror said she played the Sudoku to help her focus
Assistant U.S. attorney Jeffrey Schenk and Holmes’ defense attorney Kevin Downey joined Davila in his chambers to question the juror.
According to court transcripts, the juror said she played the game to help her focus.
‘Were you playing this Sudoku?’ Davila asked the juror while in chambers.
‘I do have Sudoku, but it doesn’t interfere with me listening,’ the juror said. ‘I’m very fidgety, so I need to do something with my hands. So at home I’ll crochet while I’m watching or listening to TV.’
Davila asked the juror if playing the puzzle distracted her from listening and she said no.
‘Have you been able to follow and retain everything that is going on in the courtroom?’ Davila asked.
‘Oh, yeah, definitely,’ the juror replied to the judge.
A sketch of Elizabeth Holmes watching on as testimony takes place during her fraud trial in San Jose on September 22
U.S. District Court Judge Edward Davila questioned juror No.5 in his chambers on Friday after being tipped off by a fellow juror via email
But Davila was apparently not convinced and juror No. 5 was replaced by an alternate.
‘The court had found good cause to excuse a juror,’ Davila told the courtroom on Friday without offering further explanation.
The shakeup comes in the seventh week of the former CEO’s trial on fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud over allegations that she misled investors, patients and doctors about the capabilities of Theranos’ blood-test technology.
Juror No. 5 was the third juror to go after a Buddhist juror was dismissed in early October after telling the judge that if Holmes were found guilty and sent to prison for a ‘long, long time’ she would ‘feel like it’s my fault’.
Juror No. 4 told Davila that as a Buddhist, she believes in love and forgiveness.
‘I’m thinking of all the time she’ll be in jail,’ the juror – identified only as a dark-haired woman in a surgical mask and green floral blouse – told Davila, according to The Mercury News.
She added: ‘It’s very hard for me. I’m thinking what happens if she has to be in there for a long long time and I’m out here. I’ll feel like it’s my fault.’
According to The Mercury News, Davila explained to the woman that she cannot consider punishment when making decisions about a defendant.
Prior to the Buddhist juror, another person on the panel was dismissed after she found out she could not miss work for more than three months.