Former Rep. Corrine Brown Wants New Trial Over Holy Spirit
Attorney says juror shouldn’t have been dismissed
Lawyers for former Rep. Corrine Brownfiled for a new trial on Thursday based on the dismissal of a juror who said “the Holy Spirit” told him Brown wasn’t guilty.
Brown was found guilty in May on 18 charges related to using money from a sham charity for personal use.
“Justice requires a new trial,” Brown’s attorney James W. Smith wrote in a motion about Judge Timothy Corrigan, the Florida Times-Union reported.
Brown was found guilty the day after the juror was removed. Smith said Corrigan’s dismissal of the juror prevented Brown from having a jury of her peers.
Corrigan said that there was “no substantial possibility that he is able to base his decision only on the evidence and the law as the court gave it to him.”
But Smith’s motion disputed this.
“There is a substantial possibility the holy spirit was actually the juror’s own mind or spirit telling him that one or more witness had not testified truthfully,” he said.
Brown is currently free while awaiting sentencing. Her sentencing date has not yet been set.