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AP: Deadlocked jury in Cosby trial wraps up for the night

K

KSweeley

Member
Link: https://apnews.com/e41cbad8111b4a6b...ed-jury-in-Cosby-trial-wraps-up-for-the-night

The Cosby case is now deadlocked and if the jury cannot convict Cosby, it will be considered a major win for Cosby's defense team:

June 15, 2017

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Four days after getting the case, deadlocked jurors in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial struggled to end their impasse Thursday on charges he drugged and molested a woman in 2004, the prospect of a mistrial growing larger even as the judge directed them to keep talking.

Still undecided, they wrapped up after 9 p.m. and will resume their work Friday morning.

The jurors had deliberated about 30 hours before telling Judge Steven O’Neill they couldn’t reach a unanimous decision on any of the counts against the 79-year-old comedian. The judge told them to try again for a verdict.

The sequestered panel of seven men and five women complied, pondering the charges for nine more hours before asking to go back to their hotel.

Jurors who have appeared stressed and even angry seemed more upbeat than on previous nights, despite enduring another marathon session in a case that has already helped torpedo Cosby’s career and nice-guy reputation.

Several jurors smiled or nodded approvingly when the judge said they must be exhausted and should start fresh Friday.

“I thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you have done,” O’Neill told them.

University of Pennsylvania law professor David Rudovsky, a criminal lawyer in Philadelphia, said Thursday that the jurors’ inability to agree on a verdict didn’t surprise him, given the nature of a case that boiled down to Cosby’s word against his accuser’s and the legal meaning of consent.

He added a hung jury would be a victory for Cosby.

“In most criminal cases, anything short of a conviction is a win for the defense,” said Rudovsky, who isn’t involved in the case. “It doesn’t surprise me that this jury is split. The prosecution had a strong case, but the defense was able to show a lot of inconsistencies.”
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M

Mimosa97

Member
Probably some guy who can't accept that his childhood idole is a rapist and keeps peddling some bs conspiracy theory to the other jurors
 
Clockwork5

Clockwork5

Member
A 13 year old he said - she said case is a tall order for any prosecution team to get a conviction, especially with zero physical evidence.
 
P

Phased

Member
Guilty Beyond a Reasonable Doubt is what the jurors have to decide.

There's very little actual evidence here to prove he's guilty. Almost all of this happened so long ago, I think the Prosecution was relying on the sheer number of people and the testimony, since they don't have much actual evidence.

I'm not saying he isn't guilty. He almost definitely is, just that it's a good thing juror's are talking this long since they should be holding themselves to a much higher standard than the rest of us.

Either way this case goes he's almost definitely destroyed in the public eye, but as far as jail time goes I think we should all be glad this isn't decided in the eyes of public opinion.
 
E

enzo_gt

tagged by Blackace
I fear that if Cosby goes free, race relations in the US will only get worse.

This is the worst time for an OJ repeat.
 
L

Lionheart1827

Member
It happens. I actually served jury duty a couple of months ago and I remember we deliberated for a few days. Its not always cut and dry and easy to come to a verdict. I remember after it was all over, reading the news articles about the case, there is A LOT of info that the public may not know that the jurors and people involved with the case do. I remember reading comments and rolling my eyes because these people have no idea.

I'm not saying Cosby is innocent, not at all. However, the jurors have to go on the facts presented during the case and not external sources. The judge makes this very clear.
 
C

Cyanity

Banned
So not only is Cosby old as dirt and basically blind, but his reputation as an upstanding POC role model has been irreversibly tainted. Even if the jury fails to convict, the damage has been done. Bill Cosby will die a disgraced man, not remembered for the good he accomplished during the civil rights movement, but for the women he drugged and raped throughout his life. That's justice enough for me. A conviction would just be icing on the cake.
 
Giolon

Giolon

Member
There's a difference between "knowing" someone did something, and proving beyond a reasonable doubt, the legal standard for criminal cases in the US. It's up to the prosecutor to make the case.

I was on a jury a few years ago that ended hung 11-1 after 1.5 days. The one holdout was a lady that wouldn't convict without a certain piece of evidence, even after judge instructions that testimony alone is enough to convict under the law if you believe that person's testimony.

I'm generally pretty thankful the burden of proof is so high. I wouldn't want to be convicted or have a loved one convicted on nothing but suspicion and someone's day so especially given modern research on the fallibility of memory.
 
N

NervousXtian

Thought Emoji Movie was good. Take that as you will.
Of course he (allegedly) did all the shit he's accused of.. but legally beyond reasonable doubt is hard to do without hard evidence.

Sucks, he should get what he deserves at this point.. to die in prison.
 
B

B.K.

Member
I'll admit, I haven't been keeping up with the case. What is all the evidence that proves the did it that has everyone ready to crucify him?
 
H

hodayathink

Member
B.K. said:
I'll admit, I haven't been keeping up with the case. What is all the evidence that proves the did it that has everyone ready to crucify him?
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For most people, the amount of similar stories from women who hadn't been in contact with each other before then is enough to convince themselves that he's guilty. And remember, that for some of these stories, his argument isn't even that it didn't happen, but that they actually did consent to it.

IMO, yeah, it's way more likely than not that he did do it, but I don't think the prosecution did (or even could, to be honest) prove that beyond a reasonable doubt.
 
P

PeskyToaster

Member
It's probably the right call. Beyond all reasonable doubt is the burden of proof on the prosecution and if they can't meet that it's their fault, not the jury. There's little hard evidence and we've recently seen threads on here showing how fallible memory is. Victim accounts alone just aren't enough and that's pretty much all you have in cases like this, especially since it's an older crime, the issues are compounded. It just doesn't pass muster.
 
B

Blader

Member
B.K. said:
I'll admit, I haven't been keeping up with the case. What is all the evidence that proves the did it that has everyone ready to crucify him?
Click to expand...

When dozens of unrelated women come forward to accuse the same man of raping them in the same way, it tends to raise an eyebrow or two.

CrocMother said:
ITT a people who have zero knowledge of the trial judge the jurors who were presented with both sides and all evidence.
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Many jurors are morons.
 
P

Psychoward

Banned
Drewton said:
Except he wasn't guilty.
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image.php
 
D

Davide

Member
Sure I'm a fan, that's why I felt the need to research and make sure he was innocent, before I became a fan actually since I only just discovered his music after he died.

There isn't just a lack of evidence against MJ in the 2005 case, there's clear evidence that the accusations were lies. And then particular accusations were particularly ludicrous.
 
V

vypek

Member
Local news and "experts" at the courthouse have been saying this would probably happen on the local news so it's not surprising. But it is upsetting. I don't think it will change for a while but hopefully I am wrong
 
G

Gentleman Jack

Member
Aizen.S.Kennedy said:
I guess people want him to be guilty regardless of dodgy testimony, inconsistencies and a fair trial. Hmm makes you think.
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People are sure he's guilty because there are double digit accusers over the course of decades. It's less plausible to imagine that they're all lying or conspiring against him.
 
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