W.Va. High Court Finds No Error in Trial Court’s Refusal to Strike ‘Expert’ Juror

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia Supreme Court has affirmed a trial court’s denial of a new trial for plaintiffs in a workplace electrocution case, finding no error in the trial court’s refusal to remove an electrical expert from the jury pool for cause. Messer v. Hampden Coal Company LLC, No. 11-0469 (W.Va. Sup. Ct.).

The high court said May 16 that the decision by the Wyoming County Circuit Court to allow an electrical engineer to serve as a juror — which forced plaintiffs’ counsel to use a peremptory challenge — was not an abuse of discretion because trial courts …