AWOL Stevens Juror Lied About Dad's Death

The juror in the Ted Stevens trial who was excused to attend her father’s funeral actually skipped out to go to the track, the Anchorage Daily News reports. Marian Hinnant, who was replaced hours before the verdict, appeared before the judge today to explain her absence. She had plans to attend the Breeders' Cup, her lawyer said, and “the story about her father was just one that popped into her head."

Hinnant launched into a rambling rant about drugs and wiretaps before the judge ruled that she will not be sanctioned for her actions. "I'm convinced you were not able to deliberate," Emmet Sullivan said. Hinnant later told reporters she would have voted to convict Stevens, saying of the Alaska Republican and his fellow members of Congress, "He was guilty, but these other guys are just as guilty." (More Ted Stevens stories.)