Berrier v. Thrift9/1/1992
he jury room. A juror may not impeach a verdict by testifying to [such matters].
State v. Rosier, 322 N.C. 826, 832-33, 370 S.E.2d 359, 363 (1988). In a subsequent case, State v. Quesinberry, 325 N.C. 125, 133-35, 381 S.E.2d 681, 687 (1989), cert. granted and judgment vacated in light of McKoy, 494 U.S. 1022, 108 L. Ed. 2d. 603 (1990), death sentence vacated and remanded for new sentencing, 328 N.C. 288, 401 S.E.2d 632 (1991), the Court reviewed federal cases distinguishing between "external" influences on jurors, evidence of which may be used to attack a verdict, and "internal" influences on a verdict, which do not fall within the exceptions to Rule 606(b). In Quesinberry the Court held that juror consideration during deliberations of the possibility of defendant's parole was an "internal" influence. The Court noted that information about parole eligibility was "general information" rather than information dealing with "this particular defendant" and that the jurors' information did not come from any outside source but was, rather, an "idea," "belief" or "impression." Id. at 136, 381 S.E.2d at 688. "Allowing jurors to impeach their verdict by revealing their 'ideas' and 'beliefs' influencing their verdict is not supported by case law, nor is it sound public policy." Id. at 136, 381 S.E.2d at 688.
Rosier and Quesinberry thus reflect the deeply entrenched rule that intrajury influences on a verdict, also known as matters that inhere in the verdict, cannot be inquired into. Accord McClain v. Otis Elevator Co., 106 N.C. App. 45, 415 S.E.2d 78 (1992); see also Virgin Islands v. Gereau, 523 F.2d 140, 149-50 (3d Cir. 1975), cert. denied, 424 U.S. 917, 47 L. Ed. 2d. 323 (1976); Kendall v. Whataburger, Inc., 759 S.W.2d 751 (Tex. App. 1988) (jurors incompetent to testify about a matter occurring within the jury room even though one juror, a paralegal, had influenced the voting of other jurors). Matters inhering in a verdict "include 'a juror not assenting to the verdict, a juror misunderstanding the instructions of the
court, a juror being unduly influenced by the statements of his fellow-jurors, or a juror being mistaken in his calculations or judgments.'" L. Hardwick & B. Ware, Juror Misconduct, Law and Litigation § 6.04, at 6-109 (1990) (quoting Parker v. State, 336 So.2d 426, 427 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App.), appeal dismissed and cert. denied, 341 So.2d 292 (Fla. 1976)).
As the information allegedly received by the jurors in the present case did not concern either the defendant or the case being tried, but was rather information about the foreman's belief or impression about the impact of punitive damage awards, the trial court correctly refused to consider the juror affidavits under Rule 606(b). Therefore, we overrule this final assignment of error.
Affirmed.
Judges GREENE and WYNN concur.
Disposition
Affirmed.
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