Does a government counsel consult with law enforcement officials familiar with the area from which the jury was chosen during jury selection?

There was no impropriety in government counsel's consulting with law enforcement officials familiar with the area from which the jury was chosen during the jury selection process. See Hamer v. United States, 259 F.2d 274, 278-281 (9th Cir. 1958), cert. denied,

[425 F.2d 1386]

359 U.S. 916, 79 S.Ct. 592, 3 L.Ed. 2d 577 (1959).

[425 F.2d 1386]

The appellants were not prejudiced by the discreetly conducted investigation of a juror and the trial judge's decision to excuse her on the ground that her husband had been convicted of an offense growing out of hijackings committed in the same neighborhood as that involved in the instant case was well within his discretion. See United States v. Zambito, 315 F.2d 266, 269 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 373 U.S. 924, 83 S.Ct. 1524, 10 L.Ed.2d 423 (1963).

Finally the prosecutor's reference in his summation to uncontradicted evidence did not amount to a comment upon appellants' failure to take the stand. United States ex rel. Leak v. Follette, 418 F.2d 1266 (2d Cir. 1969) (and cases cited therein).

Affirmed.