The People of the State of Colorado, Petitioner v. Sandra L. Jacobson, Respondent

Summary

The court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by refusing to poll jurors after a prejudicial report about the case aired and was posted online. Repeated, specific admonitions directed jurors to avoid newscasts and newspaper websites, and the report's limited distribution made jury exposure not reasonably likely. The court therefore reversed the court of appeals and affirmed the defendant's convictions. Justice Hood, dissenting, would have applied the existing midtrial-publicity procedure and required polling because the report had a substantial potential for prejudice.