As social media use by jurors continues to disrupt trials, a new bill before the California state legislature proposes a pilot program that would grant judges the power to inflict monetary sanctions on jurors found to be using social media. Currently, holding jurors in civil contempt is the only disciplinary mechanism available to judges in California when faced with the problem of ‘tweeting jurors’, often causing delays in primary trials. ‘It seemed to me that allowing judges an option of a fine in lieu of a contempt proceeding might be a reasonable approach to help manage this behavior,’ commented Assembly Member Rich Gordon, who introduced the bill. If approved, the pilot will see fines no greater than $1,500 rolled out across five pilot counties to test whether the fine is the ‘right correction’ for the problem.

Source: Big Law Business