Hernandez

Manuel Hernandez appeals from the judgment entered following a jury trial that resulted in his conviction on 22 counts of sexual abuse of a child under 14, lewd acts on a child, oral copulation of a person under age 16, and sexual penetration by a foreign object. He received a sentence of 43 years and 4 months. The only issues we address in this appeal are whether the trial court committed reversible error by removing a juror from the panel near the end of trial and whether double jeopardy bars retrial. The removed juror had spoken out about her perception that disrespect was being shown toward a defense witness. At the same time, the juror stated that she had formed no opinion about the case and promised to remain fair and open-minded. We conclude that on the facts presented, the record does not support the existence of good cause to remove the juror. As a result, appellant was denied his federal and state constitutional right to a trial by a fair and impartial jury, and we see no choice but to reverse his conviction despite the heinousness of the crimes involved.

Moreover, the law is clear that "jeopardy attaches when a defendant is placed on trial in a court of…