Defendant was found guilty of healthcare fraud and related charges stemming from her chiropractic business. On appeal, defendant argued that the district court did not apply the correct legal framework when it denied her motion for a new trial based on evidence that a juror had conducted outside research. Defendant also argued that the district court improperly instructed the jury on the “ostrich instruction,” that she could be found to have knowledge of the fraud scheme if she took deliberate action from discovering it. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, finding that the district court reasonably concluded that the juror’s outside research did not have a prejudicial effect on the verdict and that the trial evidence supported the use of the ostrich instruction. (ROVNER and KIRSCH, concurring)
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Criminal Court
Jury Deliberations