June 20, 2003
Four of the six members of the jury who listened to two days of testimony in the recent vicious dog case against James Dunnington, Moravia, expressing their anger over an affidavit subsequently filed by Kelli Paulson, 20, refuting the two guilty verdicts and asserting that she was coerced and bullied by Larry Hall, the jury foreman and the only man serving.
“That is ridiculous,” said juror Diane Olsen. “There was no bullying, no coercion. Larry was respectful of everyone.”
Juror Elaine Cooper and a fourth juror who wished to remain anonymous requested a meeting to discuss their concerns with Boundary County public information officer Mike Weland and Bonners Ferry Herald editor R.J. Cohn to tell their side of the story.
According to Olsen and Hall, Paulson was the first person to speak after the jury was sent to deliberate, and the first words she said were, “I want to be first. They’re not guilty and I’m not going to change my mind,” obviously referring to the dogs involved in an attack on two people near the Dunnington home in Moravia December 17, 2002, rather than the defendant.
According to her fellow jurors, Paulson become very emotional during the 4 ½ hours of deliberation, insisting at first that Denise Dickison, the first person attacked, provoked the dogs by kicking at them before they bit her. Surprisingly, the four jurors concurred that Paulson had no qualms of rendering a guilty verdict on the second attack that occurred that morning against Mike Hubbell, who was nipped on the heel.
According to Olsen, Paulson’s main concern seemed to be the fate of the dogs, though their jury instructions specifically told them to base their verdict only on the facts of the case and not what might happen as a result of the verdict.
After the verdict was read in court May 30 and each juror polled, Olsen said Paulson told her on the way out that she was happy with the verdict. “Obviously, she changed her mind.”
All four jurors said they were shocked to learn that the affidavit had been filed, and angered that it was used as the basis of an appeal. All agreed it was their opinion that the appeal should be dropped and justice be served.
“What happens if the dogs are allowed to return to the home and a child is attacked?” Hall asked. “We reached a sound verdict in this case, and it should stand.”
Judge Quentin Harden heard the appeal on the morning of June 13 and denied motions for a retrial and for a stay of execution. Harden ordered that Dunnington have the two surviving pit bulls euthanized or that he report to jail at 5 p.m. that day.
That decision was appealed in District Court before Judge Steve Verby a short time later, but at 5 p.m. no word had come from Verby and Dunnington turned himself in at the Boundary County Jail. About three hours later, a temporary stay was issued pending hearing June 30 and Dunnington was released. The two surviving dogs have been kept elsewhere since the court case began.