Rezko Jurors to Be Kept Secret

The Chicago Tribune reports:

A jury has been picked for the federal corruption trial of Antoin "Tony" Rezko, and U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve set opening statements for 9 a.m. Thursday.

In an unusual move for a public corruption trial, St. Eve did not release any information about the 12 jurors or six alternates.

St. Eve questioned dozens of prospective jurors in open court earlier this week, identifying them only by a number they had been given when assigned to the jury pool earlier this year.

On Wednesday, however, she did not identify which ones made the final cut. Prosecution and defense lawyers declined to answer questions about the jury.

A law clerk for St. Eve said she would not release the court-assigned numbers of the chosen jurors Wednesday and had made no decision whether she would release them at a later time.

Both sides said they expect to take an hour each to present their opening statements, though Joseph Duffy, one of Rezko's lawyers, said after court that he might take less time.

"I don't want to bore the jury," he said.

It's not clear why St. Eve has shrouded the jury in such secrecy, but federal judges here tend to be more closed about jury details since the 2006 corruption trial of former Illinois Gov. George Ryan. That case turned chaotic during jury deliberations after the Tribune reported that two jurors had concealed arrest records during jury selection months earlier. The judge then halted deliberations, dismissed both jurors, added two alternates and ordered deliberations to start anew.