Pedro Espada keeps eye on jury box seats

Surrounded by a coterie of supporters wearing red to ward off evil spirits being deployed by the government, former state senator Pedro Espada Friday accused prosecutors in his corruption trial of sitting in the jury-box seats of jurors that want to acquit him to somehow influence them.

"They have occupied four seats," Espada said during a streetside press conference outside Brooklyn federal court, where the jury is in its 10th day of deliberations. "The FBI believes those four jurors were all with us and they were trying to signal that. I worry about intimidation."

The comments came one day after Espada, charged with looting his Soundview health clinic in the Bronx, charged that an FBI agent was using "evil spiritual powers" against him with a red necklace and seating arrangements in the jury box while the government team killed time during deliberations.

Espada said he was wearing a rosary with a crucifix to counter the tactic, while supporters - including his wife and bodyguard - showed up in red outfits Friday.

"Red is a color of protection and it also opens pathways," said one red-wearer, Monica Harris, who identified herself as a family friend, former Senate aide and raw-foodist.

Espada, 58, a former Senate majority leader, and his son are charged with stealing more than $600,000 from Soundview.

Earlier this week the jury reported it was deadlocked. Espada's rosary and claims about government use of evil powers surfaced Thursday, when the jury sent out a note asking if it could return a partial verdict - suggesting that some holdouts might be shifting their position. The jury sent out another note asking about a partial verdict Friday morning.

Espada said he was concerned about the seating in the jury box because it indicated that the government had some information about which jurors were supporting him. "How do they know that?" he said. "The fact that they know which jurors are in support of us is a matter of concern.It's troublesome."

He acknowledged, however, that he doesn't actually know where any of the jurors stand, and is just surmising from guesswork and body language.

The FBI agent whose necklace apparently set the Espada camp off wore a black dress with gold earrings, but no necklace Friday. Prosecutors did, however, again take seats in the jury box as they waited for the jury.