SAN FRANCISCO — In a 2-1 ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday denied a reprieve to disgraced attorney-to-the-stars Terry Christensen from his 2008 conviction on illegal wiretapping charges.
Circuit Judges Raymond Fisher and Richard Clifton rejected defense arguments that a sympathetic juror was improperly removed during deliberations, finding the trial judge’s decision to dismiss the juror was not clearly erroneous. In dissent, U.S. District Chief Judge Dana Christensen wrote that he would reverse the convictions of Christensen and his codefendant, private investigator Anthony Pellicano, based on the juror’s removal.
