by TChris

Scott Peterson's jury has been instructed to keep an open mind -- advice that the country as a whole might want to heed. But in a trial, when the jury has been deliberating for three days, it may signal the judge's concern that the jury will hang.

Update: Talk of a hung jury may be premature. Late this afternoon the jury asked to review additonal evidence:

The panel asked to hear several of the tapes made by Amber Frey, Peterson's girlfriend. One recording they requested included Frey quizzing Peterson on why he told her his wife Laci was dead before she was reported missing. The jury also asked to see a cement anchor, information on a life insurance policy on Laci Peterson, and Scott Peterson's fishing license, among other items.

by TChris

Although the Justice Department contends that it's just too difficult to prove to a jury the facts that govern federal sentencing -- and although it cites the amount of financial loss suffered by victims as its best example of a burdensome fact to prove -- its own experience in the ongoing Enron trial undermines its argument.

The same jury that convicted five men of helping push through Enron Corp.'s late 1999 sham sale of power barges to Merrill Lynch & Co. on Friday began deliberating factors that could lift their prison sentences to a dozen years or more.

It took the government and the defense only a day to put in their sentencing evidence. Not much of a burden, really.

A prosecution expert said Enron shareholders overpaid by $43.8 million for stock purchased in the three months following the company's January 2000 announcement that it met Wall Street earnings expectations, and determined that amount to be the loss stemming from the barge deal.

Court TV has a live blog with frequently updated posts by its reporters in the courtroom. No comments, but you'll be the first to know if there's a verdict and about jury questions. The courtroom has wi-fi, (we live-blogged two afternoons of the trial when legal analyst Mickey Sherman was in the courtroom.)

by TChris

The judicial system is often described as adversarial, but this is extreme:

A former prosecutor was arrested for investigation of attempted murder after he shot and critically injured a lawyer he had been scheduled to face at a court hearing, authorities said.

The shooter, William Joice, now in private practice, was scheduled to appear at a contempt hearing to explain his failure to respond to his victim's discovery requests. The presiding judge expressed surprise, noting that he saw no ill-will between the lawyers when they were last together in court.

Deliberations in the Scott Peterson murder trial began yesterday afternoon and continue today. The jury is sequestered. Bad omen for the defense: The Judge gave the jury the option to decide on second degree murder in addition to first degree murder. The difference is that second degree murder doesn't require the prosecution to prove premeditation. Mark Geragos strongly objected to the charge, wanting all or nothing.

My view: There is no evidence of murder in this case, let alone a heat of passion type murder. There is no cause of death, no time of death, no murder weapon, no identifiable crime scene and no witnesses. It's a circumstantial case. The prosecution proved Scott was a liar and a cad, not a murderer. Geragos was right.

Juries like to compromise. The question now is whether some jurors who would have voted "not guilty" if murder one was their only option will now compromise on murder two to avoid a hung jury. A murder two conviction spares Peterson from the possiblity of the death penalty, but an acquittal was more likely when there was only the murder one charge. It will be a good ground for appeal if Peterson is convicted.

by TChris

A man who tried to buy an airline ticket with a credit card receipt protested the airline's refusal to issue the ticket by stripping naked, climbing a fence, running across the tarmac and climbing into a plane's wheel well as it was backing out of its gate. The man was arrested for trespassing after Los Angeles firefighters persuaded him to surrender.

TChris has this topic covered so I'll just post a runner-up: In Memphis, a stool-pidgeon parrot is on the lam:

Fearing a parrot named Marshmallow could identify them, three thieves returned to the scene of the crime to silence the bird -- only to be caught by police.

After making off with a booty of DVD players, computers, radios, TVs and other electronic gear _ one of the suspects realized a parrot in the home had heard him using the nickname ``J. J.'' and was repeating it.

``They were afraid the bird would 'stool' on them,'' police Maj. Billy Garrett said.``They actually believed he could identify them.'' They decided to go back for the bird, loading it into the getaway car as police arrived on the scene. The chase ended in just a few blocks, with the men crashing their car.

The foot-tall parrot, with light green feathers, flew away when his cage broke open in the crash. It hasn't been seen since. Police charged Mark Martin, 18, Dallas Davis, 25, and Jarrin Hicks, 21, with aggravated burglary and evading arrest.

Three kids would like their pet parrot back. If you see it, drop a dime to the Memphis P.D.

by TChris

Katherine Harris is not-so-fondly remembered as the Secretary of State who did everything she could to disenfranchise Florida's Gore voters in 2000. Anger against Harris is understandable, but Barry Seltzer's reaction to the sight of Harris was a bit extreme: he pointed his car at her and stepped on the gas.

"I was exercising my political expression," [the police report] quoted him as saying. "I did not run them down, I scared them a little."

Seltzer swerved to avoid actually hitting Harris. He was arrested for "aggravated assault with a deadly weapon."

You heard it here first. Lawyer and uber-legal analyst Mickey Sherman is in the courtroom for the Scott Peterson trial. The courtroom has Wi-Fi, so we are insta-messgaing. Here's what's going on. The defense has rested. Scott Peterson did not testify in his own defense.

Talkleft: Is Geragos making any inroads?
MS: I think he did well with his client's parents. They presented themselves as very nice people and the jury had to feel for them for this ordeal.
Talkleft: But what did they add as far as evidence?
MS: It allowed the jury to explain away some of the items and facts attendant to his arrest near the golf course.
Talkleft: Is the courtroom packed? How many legal analysts vs. regular media?
MS: Courtroom is packed and there is a long line of standby folks outside. The media is well settled in and there are only a few people like me here---those lawyer/analysts who are in some fashion connected to a network.
MS: Petersen family and friends take up first two rows on one side and a bit more---13 seats.
MS: Everyone just coming back in...waiting for the jury.
Talkleft: Who's up for today?
MS: dunno just yet. Supposedly 2 1/2 witnesses.
Talkleft: What's a half of witness?
MS: a dwarf
MS: Judge announcing an update. After Officer Hicks today---THE DEFENSE WILL REST!!!!!
MS: Starting tomorrow at 12:30 pm the state will put on their rebuttal case with 8 witnesses.
MS: The jury and alternates will be sequestered during deliberation "BECAUSE OF SOMETHING THAT WAS BROUGHT TO THE COURT'S ATTENTION." Final Arguments will be next Monday and Tuesday.

One of Martha Stewart's appellate lawyers was on the Today show this morning and provided this update on Martha's jail stay:

"She's got a group that's cooking," he said. "She's trying to figure out innovative ways to do microwave cooking, which is all they have in the evening to do their own cooking."

There must be a magazine devoted to microwave cooking. If you find one, you can get Martha and the gang a subscription and have it sent to:

Ms. Martha Stewart,
Reg. No. 55170-054
FPC Alderson
Glen Ray Road, Box B
Alderson, West Virginia 24910

Don't forget the Reg. No.

Remember this case of informants setting up immigrants to be busted with fake drugs? It's quite a tale.

Today, an independent report was released that blames the police:

Poor supervision and disregard for police department rules contributed to a fake-drug scandal that landed two dozen innocent people in jail, an investigation found. The report released Wednesday said confidential informants used those lapses to frame people - mostly poor Mexican immigrants - with billiards chalk bundled like real drugs.

Bump and Update: Lawyer and legal commentator Michael Cardoza has been ordered "gagged" by the judge in the Scott Peterson trial. Cardoza prepped Scott Peterson for a potential cross-examination last week and announced it to the media--the Judge says his involvement at the request of Mark Geragos created an attorney-client relationship. Of course it did. What was Cardoza thinking? Will he now become an offical member of the team? Will he trade his paid consulting gig for an unpaid defense consulting one?

Cardoza has sat through most if not all of the four month trial. For naught, it now turns out. He won't be able to comment on critical parts--closings, deliberation and verdict.

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Original Post: 10/19 11 am

The defense began presenting its case in the Scott Peterson trial yesterday. The bigger news seems to be that Michael Cardoza, a former prosecutor who has been providing legal commentary on the case--and who has been highly critical of the prosecution's case--told the media that he met with Scott Peterson twice this past week, at the request of Mark Geragos to help the defense decide whether Scott should testify. He said he met Peterson for a few hours last week and then on Sunday, conducted a mock cross-examination of Peterson for Geragos.

So, here are the issues. Does the gag order imposed on all counsel and investigators and others involved in the case now apply to Cardoza? Did he just bench himself from commenting further?