Supreme Court pitch next for man convicted of jury tampering

BIG RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A man charged with a crime for distributing pamphlets outside a western Michigan courthouse will ask the state Supreme Court to review his conviction for jury tampering.

Keith Wood’s misdemeanor conviction in Mecosta County was affirmed last week by the appeals court in a 2-1 decision. His attorney, David Kallman, says he’ll “definitely” ask Michigan’s highest court to take the case. There’s no guarantee.

In 2015, Wood distributed pamphlets that told potential jurors they could choose their conscience over the law when coming up with a verdict. He was accused of trying to influence a case involving a man who had a wetlands dispute with a state agency.

But the wetlands case ended with a plea deal and didn’t go to trial. A jury was never picked.