Peggy Buckey Sends Nearby Murder Jury Back to Square One

In a rare courthouse occurrence, a defendant in the McMartin Pre-School molestation trial caused jury deliberations in a neighboring murder trial to start all over again Wednesday.

The jury in the murder trial of Harvey Rader was ordered to begin its discussions anew after one of its members was dismissed from the panel because of remarks she overheard Peggy McMartin Buckey make Tuesday in a courthouse elevator.

Buckey, 63, was called as a witness Tuesday in the trial of Rader, accused of multiple murders, after it was reported that a juror in the case overheard Buckey discussing the case.

Under questioning from Superior Court Judge Lorna Parnell, Buckey said she briefly spoke about the case with a lawyer in an elevator in the downtown Criminal Courts Building.

Felt Sorry

“I said something like, ‘I feel sorry for them (the parents of one of the murder victims). My heart goes out to them,’ ” she testified.

Buckey said a woman in the elevator then identified herself as a juror in the Rader trial and Buckey ceased her conversation.

However, the juror later told the court that she only heard Buckey say something about “Sol (one of the alleged murder victims)” going to England.

The remark could be construed as giving credence to the defense, since the bodies of the four people Rader is accused of murdering have never been found.

Rader, 41, a British citizen, is on trial in the murders of Israeli immigrant Shlomo Salomon; his wife, Elaine, and their two children, Michalle, 15, and Mitchell, 9, who disappeared from their Northridge home Oct. 12, 1982.

Parnell ruled Wednesday that the juror had been “contaminated” by Buckey’s remarks and dismissed her. Jurors in criminal cases are only to consider evidence given at the trial.

The juror was replaced by a male alternate and the panel, which had been deliberating almost two weeks, began the task anew.

Rader’s attorney, Mark Lessem, said the problems with the juror may hurt his client’s chances for acquittal.

Voices Concern

“I’m frightened to death about what’s going on here. I’m not sure my client’s getting a fair trial,” Lessem said.

He also indicated that Buckey’s comments may not have been accidental.

“Before Mrs. Buckey testified (in the Rader trial Tuesday), I believed it was just a pure accident. . . . I could not believe a person could be that devious. After hearing Mrs. Buckey testify, I’m not so sure,” he said, adding that he was “not a person who looks under the bed for conspiracies.”

Prosecutors contend that the portly, gray-haired Rader was a business associate of Saloman and killed the family after an argument with him. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

In a 15th floor courtroom, down the hall from Rader’s trial, Buckey and her son, Raymond, have been on trial for more than two years on charges they molested 11 of their pupils at the now-closed McMartin Pre-School in Manhattan Beach from 1978 until 1983.

Raymond Buckey has been testifying since July 25.