Juror's answer at Gotti trial draws laughs

NEW YORK, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- Jury selection in the latest trial of alleged U.S. Mafia crime boss John Gotti Jr. was disrupted Tuesday by a note of levity, observers said.

The latest trial of "Junior" Gotti, charged in U.S. District Court in New York with being part of an alleged racketeering conspiracy involving two slayings, drug-dealing, bribery and other crimes, got under way Monday with jury selection, the New York Daily News reported.

Gotti was reprimanded Monday for making a joking reference to the fact the current trial is prosecutors' fourth attempt to convict him on racketeering charges in five years, all of which have ended in mistrials. And on Tuesday, a prospective juror's response in a questionnaire also drew laughs, the newspaper said.

U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel, referring the question, "How far did you go in school?" said one juror responded by saying, "Buffalo."

The Daily News said a number of prospective jurors were dismissed Tuesday for reasons from health issues to anti-defense bias. Officials say they hope to get Gotti's latest trial started by Monday.