Gionis Ruling Restores Juror’s Faith

* It was with intense personal interest that I read (May 5) that the California Supreme Court had ruled that there was no basis for a lower court’s reversal of the conviction of Thomas Gionis on charges of conspiracy in the brutal attack on Aissa Wayne.

As a juror who served on the jury which, after hearing all the testimony given by both sides, and presided over by an even-minded, patient judge, deliberated in an intelligent manner to reach a conviction unanimously agreed upon, I was shocked when that verdict was overturned on “technicalities.” It was then that my initial faith in the efficacy of our justice system based on the foundation of our jury system became sadly shaken.

I was further incensed when the appellate court’s decision was partially based on the “assumption” that some lawyer’s remarks “influenced” the jury’s verdict. How demeaning to our jury!

As a concerned citizen as well as a juror, I waited patiently and with some skepticism upon reading that the California Supreme Court had agreed to review the overturning of our jury’s conviction in the Gionis case.

Now that the court has revived our jury’s solidly based conviction, my faith has become somewhat renewed that justice can prevail, knowing that within our overall justice system there lies the means of preserving our judicial heritage.

ROLENA BLACK

Tustin

* As a friend of former Orange County Deputy Dist. Atty. Jeoffrey Robinson, I feel compelled to comment on the total lack of responsible journalism you showed in reporting on the California Supreme Court’s reversal of Dr. Thomas Gionis’ assault conviction. The high court’s decision agreed with the trial court that Mr. Robinson had properly prosecuted Dr. Gionis and did nothing to deprive him of a fair trial. Although The Times widely reported when the state Court of Appeal reversed the conviction on the grounds of prosecutorial misconduct, your shabby reporting of this latest development included nothing about the real reason for the decision and that Mr. Robinson had been appropriately vindicated.

JEFFREY C. METZGER

Laguna Hills