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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- An American Indian man whose assault conviction was overturned after reports that jurors discussed racial stereotypes won't get a new trial.
A federal appeals court in Denver has overturned a lower court's 2007 decision to throw out the conviction against Kerry Dean Benally.
Benally, 36, was convicted of hitting a Bureau of Indian Affairs officer with a flashlight after complaints he was driving erratically in the White Mesa area of southeastern Utah.
After he was convicted, a juror reported that the foreman made derogatory comments about Indians and drinking.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Wednesday that Benally's conviction should not have been overturned. The court cited a rule prohibiting jurors from testifying about their verdicts.
Benally faces up to 20 years in prison.
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
