DARIEN — A judge has ordered a new trial in a manslaughter case because a juror sent text messages during the trial to the victim's brother.

The Florida Times-Union (http://bit.ly/TTbdjZ ) reports Superior Court Judge D. Jay Stewart said communication between a juror and the witness warranted a new trial in the case of Brian Gale, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after his 15-year-old stepson was found dead during a hunting trip in March of 2010.

Defense attorneys for Brian Gale asked a judge at a hearing on Nov. 27 to grant him a new trial because of the text messages. One message the juror sent to the victim's older brother said: "Dude. We're doing everything we can."

It is not yet clear when Gale's new trial will begin.