by CBS4 Newsroom
newsroom@cbs4qc.com
(AP) An Iowa man serving a 50-year prison term in the death of his 3-month-old daughter has been granted a new trial because of an error during jury deliberations.
The Iowa Court of Appeals on Thursday said Curtis Miller, formerly of West Branch, should have been granted a mistrial in his case in 2009.
The court says a judge erred by allowing a juror to deliberate for two days and then leave for an out-of-state family funeral with no return date set.
Rather than wait for the juror's return, the judge eventually added an alternate juror to the panel, which convicted Miller of child endangerment and involuntary manslaughter in the death of his daughter, Kimisha.
The girl suffered severe head injuries while in his care in 2007 and died weeks later.
