United States v. Robert Richard Mutchler, and Mike Byrn Green

GOLDBERG, Circuit Judge.

On January 26, 1976, defense counsel and the prosecutor selected a jury to try appellants on charges of possessing marijuana with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). Following a trial on February 5-6, 1976, that jury returned guilty verdicts against both appellants. During the nine days between jury selection and trial, nine of the twelve jurors sat on one or more similar drug cases. One of those cases involved the same prosecutor and a government witness that participated in appellants’ trial. Because the jurors’ interim service robbed defense…