Australia - Puzzle-playing jurors sink Australian drugs trial

[Euphoric]

Wed Jun 11, 12:52 AM

SYDNEY (AFP) - An Australian judge was forced to abandon a three-month drugs trial when jurors admitted they were doing sudoku puzzles to fight off boredom, reports said on Wednesday.

Sydney District Court Judge Peter Zahra aborted proceedings Tuesday after the jury forewoman admitted she and four others had been playing the popular numbers game since the second week of the hearing.

She told the judge the brain-teasers had helped "keep my mind busy" as she listened to testimony from the 105 witnesses at the trial, which has cost more than one million dollars (945,000 US) so far.

"Some of the evidence is rather drawn out and I find it difficult to maintain my attention the whole time and that (the puzzle) doesn't distract me too much from proceedings," she said.

The jury's number was up after one of the defendants -- facing a possible life sentence for conspiracy to manufacture a commercial quantity of amphetamines -- noticed the forewoman completing the puzzle.

Lawyers had presumed the scribbling they could see jurors doing was simply note-taking.

"We actually all thought they were quite a diligent jury," solicitor Robyn Hakelis, who represented one of the accused, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"The judge had made many comments about what a good jury they were, how they were taking copious amounts of notes. I'm quite disappointed at the end that's not what was taking place."

The jurors face no penalty for their behaviour and a new panel is expected to be sworn in within weeks.

Sudoku is a puzzle in which 81 squares must be filled with the numbers 1 to 9 so there are nine complete sets in each row, column and square.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/08061...ustice_offbeat