Kyle Trial Juror Ousted for Misconduct

A Superior Court juror deliberating the fate of accused murderer Ricky Kyle was pulled off the jury after she conducted ballistics tests and asked the judge to allow her to share the results with other jurors, officials said Tuesday.

Court officials said the 11 remaining jurors were ordered to begin deliberations anew with an alternate juror. The original deliberations began Wednesday and were suspended Monday when the juror’s misconduct was discovered, officials said. Neither the prosecution nor the defense asked that a mistrial be declared, officials said.

The woman juror, whom United Press International identified as Marian Walecki, was the third juror to leave the panel during the six-month trial. One juror was excused on the trial’s first day because of illness. A second juror left before closing arguments because she was nine months pregnant. One alternate remains.

Confession Alleged

Ricky Kyle, 22, is accused by prosecutors of shooting his multimillionaire father, Henry Harrison Kyle, on July 22, 1983, purportedly because he sought to inherit part of the vast estate. Three witnesses testified that Kyle confessed to them that he shot his father.

Defense attorneys told the jury that Ricky Kyle shot his 60-year-old father in self defense, after the older man fired in his direction as the two were searching Kyle’s Bel-Air estate for prowlers.

Much of the trial testimony revolved around the placement of bullets fired during the pre-dawn gun battle in the Kyle home. Prosecutors as well as defense attorneys contended that the pattern of bullets buttressed their explanation of the events.

Prosecutor John Moulin said that the ousted juror apparently tried to conduct her own makeshift ballistics tests. She “conducted an experiment over the weekend out in the desert, firing a gun of some sort,” Moulin said.

Tests Made Public

The tests became public when the juror on Monday wrote a note to Judge Robert R. Devich, who is hearing the case, to ask that she be allowed to inform other jurors of her test results.

Devich immediately excused the juror and ordered deliberations to begin again after determining that none of the other jurors knew of the desert ballistics tests, Moulin said. Devich declined comment, and defense attorneys could not be reached for comment.