A DC trial was nearing its end when the jury made a discovery that shocked everyone in the courtroom

 

The E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse, for the US District Court and US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, is seen in Washington, DC, November 3, 2025.

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images/File

The charges at a monthlong criminal trial in Washington’s federal court last month were fairly straightforward: That one man had allegedly held up seven 7-Elevens and a few other gas stations in spring 2023 and stolen cars.

But the trial of Shamell Naquan Joyner had a twist. While deliberating, jurors found a Chinese yuan in one sweatshirt that was in evidence. And inside a jacket that was also part of the case, they found suspicious white powder in a folded up piece of paper. The prosecutors and judge said it appeared to be drugs.

The DC US Attorney’s Office, law enforcement on the case and the defense team hadn’t known.

The events of the jury deliberation raised eyebrows across the federal court in recent days, as word spread of what happened.