State v. Rodriguez

OPINION

ROLL, Presiding Judge.

The state files this petition for special action in connection with the trial court’s granting of defendant Salvador Garcia Prado’s motion for new trial based upon juror misconduct. Because the impeachment of the jury’s verdict resulted from impermissible intrusion into the jury’s mental processes, we accept jurisdiction and grant relief.

FACTS

In June 1989, defendant Salvador Garcia Prado stood trial on four counts of unlawful sale of a narcotic drug. The jury returned verdicts finding Prado guilty on all four counts. When the jury was polled, unanimity was…