USA - Pennsylvania. Judge Paul M. Yatron has awarded Bryan S. Galvin, 49, White, a new trial

Berks County judge Paul M. Yatron has awarded Bryan S. Galvin, 49, White, a new trial due to serious juror misconduct. Galvin was convicted of 1st-degree murder and sentenced to death in 2007 in the Jan. 30, 2006 killing of his friend, Kristofer Kolesnik, 32. The appeal centered around evidence that several members of the jury selected from Luzerne County discovered information about Galvin's prior criminal history in the midst of the trial. According to the opinion, at least 1 juror researched the case during the trial and discovered that Galvin had been acquitted of murder in an unrelated case. The juror also discovered and shared that Galvin assaulted a sheriff's deputy during an attempt to select a Berks County jury on the case involving Kolesnik's death. The opinion notes that the information the juror discovered is factual, but was prohibited from being included in the trial since it was not related to the case. Prosecutors were not allowed to mention that Galvin was accused of killing another friend, Todd Heck, in 1991. After 3 trials on that case, Galvin was acquitted of the charges in May 1999. A jury convicted Galvin of 1st-degree murder on Aug. 10, 2007 and imposed the death penalty on Aug. 13, 2007. Yatron sentenced Galvin to death on Sept. 6, 2007.