Warrant issued for arrest of juror who failed to appear in court

Warrant issued for arrest of juror who failed to appear in court

A juror who failed to appear at the High Court following a lunch break has become the subject of an arrest warrant, The Irish Times reports.

The woman failed to appear on Tuesday to hear a defamation action by Turf Club head of security Chris Gordon against the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association ( IRTA).

The court heard she did not stay with the other jurors during lunch and when she failed to later reappear Mr Justice Bernard Barton said he would exercise his power to continue with 11 jurors.

Mr Gordon claims he was defamed by the IRTA, which denies this.

Mr Justice Barton said he was finding the juror in contempt yesterday and issued a bench warrant for her arrest.

As a result of a legal issue in the case, the 11 jurors were recalled and discharged, with the case being adjourned until November.

He told them their discharge was unrelated to the decision over the missing juror.

The judge said he had hoped the juror would have turned up on Wednesday to explain herself but that she had “essentially failed to comply with her oath”.

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