Jurors took photos with Derrick Rose less than an hour after finding him not guilty in civil rape trial

Mary Altaffer/AP

A Los Angeles civil jury on Wednesday cleared New York Knicks point guard Derrick Rose in a case involving an alleged gang rape from 2013 and dismissed a woman’s $21.5 million lawsuit filed against the player.

Afterwards, several journalists on scene at the court room reported that members of the jury were “giddy” to meet Rose in person, and some even posed for pictures with him and his lawyer.

Here’s one photo of Rose, his lawyer, and one juror:

And another, this one with two jurors, only one of whom had heard of Rose:

Here’s how Diana Moskovtiz of Deadspin described what happened after the trial wrapped up:

“The jury initially declined to speak to reporters, but later some jurors posed with Rose and his attorney. One juror who gave her name only as Jennifer said “we all wanted to get a pic with him.”

According to the New York Post, the judge presiding over the case also had words for Rose before the end of Wednesday’s session.

From the Post:

“Best wishes,” Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald told Rose. “Except when the Knicks play the Lakers,” he joked.

It’s hard to overstate how truly shocking this behavior is. The entire judicial process relies fundamentally on objectivity from the judge and the jury; that the judge would joke with the defendant — a world famous professional athlete, no less — after a not-guilty verdict, and that the jurors would be quick to take pictures with him, shows no semblance of objectivity whatsoever.

Speaking to the media after the verdict, Rose’s lawyer, Mark Baute, said this: “The system worked.”