Trial of Jackson man postponed; more charges filed

Southeast Missourian

Jurors expecting to hear the jury trial of a Jackson man charged with receiving stolen property learned Tuesday the trial was postponed and potential jurors interviewed by Cape Girardeau County law enforcement officers.

Todd R. Rowland, 37, who was charged with three counts of felony receiving stolen property and one count of misdemeanor receiving stolen property, is now facing additional charges of attempted improper communication with a juror and attempted perjury, according to a release Tuesday from Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle.

Swingle filed the charge alleging that Rowland made a telephone call to the husband of a juror with the intention of influencing the official action of that juror.

According to the statement, Rowland reportedly told the husband that he had noticed that his wife was going to be one of the jurors in the case and he wanted someone he knew on the jury panel. He reportedly explained his side of the case to the husband and asked him to tell it all to his wife so she could be an advocate for his side once deliberations began.

The attempted perjury charge alleges that the defendant contacted one of the witnesses in the case Thursday and Saturday, and asked that witness to give false testimony, the statement said.

Circuit Judge William Syler increased Rowland's bond in the receiving stolen property case to $50,000 and set bond in the attempted perjury case at $50,000 and the attempted improper communication with a juror case at $25,000.

Rowland was in custody Tuesday in the Cape Girardeau County Jail.

Rowland was charged in May with four felony counts of receiving stolen property, which if convicted carry maximum prison terms of seven years for each count.