Judge Rejects Mistrial For Former BP Engineer

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge has refused to declare a mistrial in the case of former BP drilling engineer Kurt Mix.

In a filing Tuesday, defense lawyers said questions asked Monday of witness Wilson Arabie improperly raised issues of whether Mix ordered copies made of spill-related documents in order to eliminate possibly incriminating hand-written notes made in some of the margins. The defense says an earlier court order precluded prosecutors from raising the issue.

U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval Jr. ruled Tuesday that he would instruct jurors to disregard the testimony. However he declined to declare a mistrial.

Mix is charged with obstruction of justice for allegedly deleting text messages and voicemails about the company's response to its 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

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