A Massachusetts man accused of supplying heroin to Mainers who then sold it in the Newport area told a federal judge Monday that he did not believe he could get a fair trial in Bangor because every person in the jury pool was white, and he is African-American.
Myron Crosby Jr., 55, of Springfield is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess more than one kilogram of heroin between May 2015 and January 2016.
A kilogram is equal to about 2.2 pounds.
Crosby has pleaded not guilty.
After a jury was selected Monday from a pool of more than 70 northern and Down East Maine residents, Crosby’s attorney, Jeffrey Silverstein of Bangor, asked a second time for the trial to be moved to Connecticut or Massachusetts, both states that are more ethnically diverse than Maine.
Crosby spoke directly to U.S. District Judge John A. Woodcock, which is highly unusual in this phase of a trial.
“Your honor, I’d like to be tried by a jury of my peers,” Crosby said. “I feel I don’t have a chance at a fair trial here.”
Silverstein also argued that because Crosby had never been to Maine before his arrest, he should not be tried here.
Woodcock denied Silverstein’s oral motion just as he denied a written motion earlier this month.
“I’m sympathetic to Mr. Crosby’s position,” the judge said. “Mr. Crosby is the only African-American in the courtroom right now [out of about 10 people]. To my knowledge, this country has never interpreted being tried by a jury of one’s peers as being tried by a jury of one’s race.”
Woodcock said that while the jury might not be racially or ethnically diverse, it is diverse socioeconomically. The judge also said the long jury selection process and questioning of potential jurors individually was designed to discover people with biases or prejudices and to excuse them from jury duty.
Silverstein has preserved the issue for appeal to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Crosby, whose nickname is Templer, was indicted Sept. 14 by a federal grand jury in Bangor. He was arrested several days later in Massachusetts and brought to Maine. Crosby has been held without bail since then.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel Casey, who is prosecuting the case, claims that the drug conspiracy Crosby was a part of began more than three years ago. Truck drivers Jamie Akerson, 56, of Pittsfield and Todd Shorey, 52, of Newport decided to take over heroin distribution in Newport/Etna/Dexter area after recent arrests limited the availability of the drug and contacted Crosby, according to court documents.
Akerson and Shorey have been convicted of the same drug conspiracy charge Crosby faces and are awaiting sentencing.
Another co-defendant, Don Grace, 56, of Etna was sentenced in December 2016 to 15 years in federal prison for his role in drug distribution scheme. All three are named as witness for the prosecution in court documents.
Crosby’s trial will begin at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday in a courtroom on the third floor of the Margaret Chase Smith Federal Building on Harlow Street. It is expected to end Friday.
If convicted, Crosby faces between 10 years and life in federal prison and a fine of up to $8 million.
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