Thank you for your coffee, seignor. I shall miss that when we leave Casablanca. ~ Ingrid Bergman (Casablanca)

I was reading through the comments at JustOneMinute this morning when the news came out that the judge and lawyers were questioning jurrors regarding the posibility of exposure to information outside the trial. Matt Appuzo has this:

Attorneys and a federal judge began privately questioning each juror in the CIA leak trial Monday after one juror apparently saw or read something about the case over the weekend.

U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton has ordered jurors to avoid contact with media coverage of former White House aide I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby’s trial.

He said Monday that one juror “may have been exposed to information related to this case outside the courtroom, and conceivably others may as a result of that been exposed.”

More when it is available.

The AP Story linked above is now reporting that

A federal judge dimissed a juror in the case against former White House aide I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby Monday, after one juror apparently saw or read something about the case over the weekend.

Commenters at JOM are reporting that defense attorny Wilson is asking that deliberations continue with the remaining 11 jurrors. As I understand it, if either of the two alternates are used than deliberations would have to start from the beginning.

UPDATE:

U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton ordered the juror removed, saying “what she had exposure to obviously disqualifies her.” The judge declined to say what information the juror had seen.

Walton said the remaining jurors had not been tainted. He said he would allow deliberations to continue with 11 jurors rather than calling on one of two alternate jurors.