Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Astoundingly Stupid Teacher Allegedly Brought 18 Bags Of Heroin To Jury Duty
By
Garth Johnston
Published Oct 18, 2012
Modified Oct 18, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Garth Johnston
Published Oct 18, 2012
Modified Oct 18, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Jury duty has turned into a serious drag for one teacher at the Williamsburg School of Architecture and Design. But that is what happens when you (allegedly!) try and bring 18 small bags of heroin into a courthouse. Like cellphones in school, you really gotta leave that stuff at home!
Here's what happened: 33-year-old teacher Damian Esteban of Manhattan was, until yesterday, a juror in the murder trail of Jamal Armstead who is accused of killing a teen on the Upper West Side in 2008. But Esteban was quickly replaced by an alternate after he set off the metal detector in the State Supreme Court in Manhattan yesterday. Because when a court officer checked the cigarette box that was setting off the alarm, she allegedly found the bags of H and Esteban was promptly arrested. Whoops! He is expected to be arraigned today.
Esteban has been a teacher at the Williamsburg School of Architecture and Design since 2007, but you wouldn't know it from their website which has already been wiped clean of him. Still, according to the Times, as of yesterday it showed, "that last spring he taught a class titled 'Global IV.' One of his homework assignments required students to write a brief paper saying whether they agreed or disagreed that 'Napoleon was the child of the French Revolution.'" We're guessing there was extra credit for focusing on Napoleon's love of horse riding.
Tagged
damian esteban
DOE
heroin
jury duty
Garth Johnston
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
NYC tow companies busted for ripping off drivers must give $67K in refunds, city says
Mayor Mamdani has expanded enforcement on towing scams, but the unlicensed towing industry remains largely unregulated.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Oct 2, 2026 at 4:47 p.m. ET
Off-duty NYPD officer stabbed in the Bronx, police say
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Commissioner Jessica Tisch visited the officer in the hospital.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Off-duty NYPD officer stabbed in the Bronx, police say
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Commissioner Jessica Tisch visited the officer in the hospital.
By
Ryan Kost
DOC negligence factored in death at Rikers' Bellevue hospital outpost, jail officials say
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Conductor on NYC subway that dragged man to death may have skipped safety check, source says
By
Stephen Nessen
NYPD still searching for man who threw burning substance on victim in East Harlem
By
Ryan Kost
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .