Judge Weighs Mistrial Request In Sweat Lodge Case

CAMP VERDE, Ariz. (AP) -- A Yavapai County judge has found that prosecutors in a self-help author's manslaughter case broke legal rules when they failed to give the defense a document.

But Judge Warren Darrow has not yet decided whether to declare a mistrial.

Attorneys for James Arthur Ray urged the action Wednesday. They contend that the prosecution's yearlong failure to disclose an e-mail from an environmental scientist meant they couldn't adequately prepare a defense.

Ray has pleaded not guilty in the deaths of three people following a 2009 sweat lodge ceremony he led near Sedona.

Prosecutors say they inadvertently failed to turn over the e-mail from Richard Haddow, who looked at the environmental conditions surrounding the ceremony.

Ray's attorneys argue the e-mail shows Ray could not have foreseen a substantial risk of death.

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