Charlie Adelson lawyer asks to interview jurors over 'group chat' created before trial ended

The defense lawyer for Charlie Adelson, who was found guilty Monday in the murder-for-hire killing of Dan Markel, is asking that the 12-person jury be interviewed about a "group chat" that members reportedly established before the trial ended.

In a motion filed Tuesday, Miami attorney Dan Rashbaum wrote that he was contacted Monday — just minutes after the verdicts were announced — by one of three alternate jurors who were dismissed before deliberations began. The juror gave his name and cell number and asked that Rashbaum contact him.

"I have a question for you," the juror wrote.

Rashbaum said in the motion, which was labeled "sealed" but available on the court's website, that he contacted the juror shortly afterward.

"The alternate juror advised that several days ago, one or more members of the jury asked all other jurors for their telephone numbers, after which some sort of group chat was established," Rashbaum wrote. "While the alternate juror was unaware of what was said on the group chat, he explained he felt this was something the parties and the court should be aware of.

Rashbaum said the juror was asked whether any discussions took place in the group chat about the case, but he said he didn't know.

"We do not know ― and absent juror interviews, cannot know ― what the substance of any extrinsic juror communication was, or if those communications involved outside information about the case or constituted premature deliberations," Rashbaum wrote. "What we do know is that this particular juror was uncomfortable enough to reach out to us."

Rashbaum noted in his motion that he conferred with prosecutors but that they oppose the request.

"Given the extensive publicity surrounding this case, and the intense media and community interest in its outcome, we believe that an interview of the jurors ― either by this court or by undersigned counsel — is required to ensure the integrity of the jury's verdict in this case," Rashbaum wrote.

The jury deliberated for only about three hours Monday before returning guilty verdicts on all three charges against Adelson: first-degree murder and conspiracy and solicitation to commit murder. Adelson, 47, faces life in prison.

Adelson is the fourth person to be convicted in the July 18, 2014, fatal shooting of Markel, his former brother-in-law, who was killed amid a bitter child custody fight with Adelson's younger sister, Wendi Adelson. Luis Rivera, one of the two hit men who came to Tallahassee to kill Markel, pleaded guilty in 2016 and is serving 19 years in prison. The other hit man, Sigfredo Garcia, and Katie Magbanua, Adelson's ex-girlfriend and the mother of Garcia's children, were convicted at trial and sentenced to life in prison.

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Charlie Adelson lawyer asks to interview jurors over 'group chat'