Closing Arguments- Chase Merritt Charged W/Murder of Joseph, Summer, Gianni and Joe Jr McStay #2

[missy1974]

I asked Kit at L&C on Monday when they started, she checked with Cathy and said "mcstay jurors started approx 10:30 am local time today. 4 1/2 hours from last thursday".

I think JD Creighton also had a tweet about them coming back from lunch so don't think they deliberated through lunch. Do we know if they're only taking an hour, or if it's the 1 1/2 they had been doing during testimony?

I think the one tweet from JD saying they came back from lunch was around 2... but that doesn't mean that's when they came back or how long they took. For all we know, they took a half hour just to get some fresh air, or maybe there is a smoker or 2 lol I do think that L&C has someone there, maybe their camera guy? Because Cathy did say that they were not allowed the camera in the hearing the other morning. And we know L&C doesn't move that quick

 

[MissJames]

Just one more thing.
I do not think that there is one lawyer, including the defence, that thinks that Chase Merritt is innocent.
Not one of them.
Not one.
But, that does not matter to them.
It's just a game.

I always believed there were ethics involved in defending a person charged with a crime. Lines that were not crossed . That seems to have fallen by the wayside & now it’s win at all costs.
There are certainly instances of corruption by LE & DA’s , but lately it almost seems to be a requirement for defense attorney’s.
I know that’s an exaggeration but it’s the way I feel today.

 

[MissJames]

Something always happens when I'm busy too LOL I have no plans for today...

So maybe today is the day !!Lol

 

[geevee]

I think the one tweet from JD saying they came back from lunch was around 2... but that doesn't mean that's when they came back or how long they took. For all we know, they took a half hour just to get some fresh air, or maybe there is a smoker or 2 lol I do think that L&C has someone there, maybe their camera guy? Because Cathy did say that they were not allowed the camera in the hearing the other morning. And we know L&C doesn't move that quick

LOL No doubt. We may have to be happy with how many days they deliberate rather than hours, much less taxing on the system.

 

[Kittybunny]

"The proof is the fact the McStay Family was buried in the desert."
Why is it assumed that once people cross the border they can't return either dead or alive? How does their bodies being discovered in the Ca. desert 4 years after their disappearance mean they never entered Mexico? <modsnip: rude and personalizing>

Ok then. They went to Mexico - what did they do? Where did they stay? What did they eat? Did they spend any money, use CCs? No evidence whatsoever that they were there - no credit card use, motel or hotel stays, restaurant receipts, etc. There is not one iota of evidence that they were there - and that is one place where SDSO did look and try to find out if they were there, and there was also a PI. Nothing was found.

And then what? A drug cartel killed them in Mexico, piled the bodies in the car, and (likely being non-US citizens) somehow snuck into the US in the Trooper, then drove to Victorville and buried them in the desert when they could have dumped them in the Mexican wilderness? Beyond highly implausible.

 

[Force Ten]

Ok then. They went to Mexico - what did they do? Where did they stay? What did they eat? Did they spend any money, use CCs? No evidence whatsoever that they were there - no credit card use, motel or hotel stays, restaurant receipts, etc. There is not one iota of evidence that they were there - and that is one place where SDSO did look and try to find out if they were there, and there was also a PI. Nothing was found.

And then what? A drug cartel killed them in Mexico, piled the bodies in the car, and (likely being non-US citizens) somehow snuck into the US in the Trooper, then drove to Victorville and buried them in the desert when they could have dumped them in the Mexican wilderness? Beyond highly implausible.

I'm surprised the defense didn't go with this angle.

 

[Mony Mony]

Praying for a guilty verdict-1st degree x4 today.

 

[Jax49]

If your comment is in reply to someone, please use the REPLY option.

TIA

 

[mothwings]

If Merritt were running for public office then according to the vote totals posted here, he has obviously lost the election. However, in this circumstance he only needs 1 vote to avoid a conviction and I bet the farm that he has it.

Having watched mistrials happen over exactly this, I try to ignore it even if it's a gut feeling right now.

I couldn't imagine what it be like watching a retrial in 5 years or so. I also can't imagine how the family is feeling during deliberations right now.

Let's hope 12 people will agree. Then again, just by looking at our poll and all the support and advantage he has had, I can see one or two jurors voting not guilty.

I sure hope I'm wrong and he doesn't get away with this. 4 and half something years in jail is not enough time for this.

He deserves to take his last breath in a cell.

Will he go to San Quentin? They seem really lenient there. Scott Peterson playing basketball and tanning?

 

[Bennettfit]

"If your comment is in reply to someone, please use the REPLY option."
For some reason it's not working on the device I'm using.

 

[mothwings]

Men condemned to death in California must (with some exceptions) be held at San Quentin State Prison, while condemned women are held at Central California Women's Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla. San Quentin also houses the state execution chamber.[48] Women executed in California would be transported to San Quentin by bus before being put to death.[49]

As of 2015, 708 male death row inmates were held at San Quentin. There were 23 male California death row inmates in medical facilities, other state prisons, and in correctional facilities in proximity to their court hearings. As of August 2017, there were 22 female death row inmates at CCWF.[5][50]

Capital punishment in California - Wikipedia

 

[asyousay]

So the big question today is are the Jury going to manage a full day of deliberations?

I would hate for them to wear themselves out and need a nap around 2pm!!

 

[Bernina]

"No evidence whatsoever that they were there - no credit card use, motel or hotel stays, restaurant receipts, etc."
You are wrong, there were reports of them being seen there. At that time Mexico was mostly a cash economy, so there would have been no receipts.

"A drug cartel killed them in Mexico, and (likely being non-US citizens) somehow snuck into the US in the Trooper, piled the bodies in the car, then drove to Victorville"

The Trooper wouldn't have had anything to do with it other than getting them to the border.

There is a "Quote" button on the lower right-hand corner of the post you are answering to. Could you please use that? Hit the "Quote" and then "Reply". The post you are answering to will appear in your response box. Without doing that, your posts are fractured and difficult to attribute to a specific poster.

 

[Longtimenoc]

Having watched mistrials happen over exactly this, I try to ignore it even if it's a gut feeling right now.

I couldn't imagine what it be like watching a retrial in 5 years or so. I also can't imagine how the family is feeling during deliberations right now.

Let's hope 12 people will agree. Then again, just by looking at our poll and all the support and advantage he has had, I can see one or two jurors voting not guilty.

I sure hope I'm wrong and he doesn't get away with this. 4 and half something years in jail is not enough time for this.

He deserves to take his last breath in a cell.

Will he go to San Quentin? They seem really lenient there. Scott Peterson playing basketball and tanning?

Some of you may remember being caught up in the Menendez brothers trials. Mistrial declaired first time causing much dismay. They were quickly retried and found guilty fortunately.

I cant help but see the similarities here, the drama and high emotions. I fear we are on track for the same. No 12 people think alike and even though most of us know Merritt is guilty like we knew the cruel murdering brothers were guilty, I fear a couple will hang the jury.

I wish I were as confident as some but I fear the worst.

 

[missy1974]

So the big question today is are the Jury going to manage a full day of deliberations?

I would hate for them to wear themselves out and need a nap around 2pm!!

haha funny you say that, I'm sitting here thinking, I got up way too early today, they haven't even started deliberating for the day and I feel like I need a nap already!

 

[gitana1]

It’s the same folks who brought us Rebecca Zahau’s “suicide.” In drama, putting aside doubt or skepticism and accepting something illogical for the sake of the story is called “willing suspension of disbelief.” Suspending one’s critical thinking has no place in an LE investigation.

I know nothing about the competency or lack thereof of the SDSD. But to be fair, there are a few of us critical thinkers who believe Rebecca's death may indeed have been a suicide despite the elaborate way she was tied (which could be done by a person to themselves as I saw demonstrated in a video).

It's odd. I've seen a couple of those now. Here is another where two women duct taped themselves together somehow in bizarre suicide.

Deaths of Saudi sisters found bound together in New York river ruled to be suicide

There have also been a few cases where people aren't tied up but staged their deaths to look like a suicide:

My Father Staged His Suicide to Look Like a Murder

https://www.google.com/amp/s/nypost...ged-his-suicide-to-look-like-murder-cops/amp/

'Hero' cop staged suicide to look like murder, embezzled from youth program

I've analyzed the RZ case pretty thoroughly and think it could indeed have been a suicide.

And I don't know if the SDSD dropped the ball here. Didn't a family member initially tell them that it was the McStay family in the border crossing footage?

But I do know that CM was charged and has been tried. So they did well enough that the DA felt it was a viable case to prosecute.

And after analyzing this case it seems clear to me that CM killed the McStay family.

 

[MissJames]

Some of you may remember being caught up in the Menendez brothers trials. Mistrial declaired first time causing much dismay. They were quickly retried and found guilty fortunately.

I cant help but see the similarities here, the drama and high emotions. I fear we are on track for the same. No 12 people think alike and even though most of us know Merritt is guilty like we knew the cruel murdering brothers were guilty, I fear a couple will hang the jury.

I wish I were as confident as some but I fear the worst.

If not a hung jury , a plethora of appeals , if convicted.
Then there’s Dalia Dippito ON TAPE hiring a hitman to kill her husband. Three trials & still appealing the last one , IIRC.

 

[wary]

It will happen at 2:20pm MDT. Because that is when my dentist appointment is.

I’m busy this afternoon, but I’ll happily sacrifice for the common good. Besides, it’d be rather good to not have to wait that long two hours...

 

[la2cabo]

I know nothing about the competency or lack thereof of the SDSD. But to be fair, there are a few of us critical thinkers who believe Rebecca's death may indeed have been a suicide despite the elaborate way she was tied (which could be done by a person to themselves as I saw demonstrated in a video).

It's odd. I've seen a couple of those now. Here is another where two women duct taped themselves together somehow in bizarre suicide.

Deaths of Saudi sisters found bound together in New York river ruled to be suicide

There have also been a few cases where people aren't tied up but staged their deaths to look like a suicide:

My Father Staged His Suicide to Look Like a Murder

https://www.google.com/amp/s/nypost...ged-his-suicide-to-look-like-murder-cops/amp/

'Hero' cop staged suicide to look like murder, embezzled from youth program

I've analyzed the RZ case pretty thoroughly and think it could indeed have been a suicide.

And I don't know if the SDSD dropped the ball here. Didn't a family member initially tell them that it was the McStay family in the border crossing footage?

But I do know that CM was charged and has been tried. So they did well enough that the DA felt it was a viable case to prosecute.

And after analyzing this case it seems clear to me that CM killed the McStay family.

As bizarre as the RZ case was I agree that she could've committed suicide.

 

[geevee]

Cathy Russon‏ @cathyrusson 1m1 minute ago
#McStay - Jurors have resumed deliberations.