Dr. Teresa Sievers Trial Discussion - Mark Sievers and Jimmy Rodgers

[MsArk]

Checking in periodically from the road today. As always thank you for the tweet updates!

ETA- Sorry for the bold. TS’s entire testimony? Thought we might have a verdict today... maybe still a possibility.

 

[beach]

I reopened the other thread. Which thread do you guys want to stay on? Let's keep it in one thread. Doesn't matter to me, just trying to keep the jury stuff in one place.

 

[Scalex]

I say we stay in the verdict thread and keep discussions in there.

 

[Scalex]

We can return to this thread once court sends them home for the day

 

[dixiegirl1035]

here is what they are asking about:

Her answer starts after the question at 17 minutes. Darn it this video ends in the middle of her answering that question at 17 minutes and 33 seconds.

Paraphrase, it begins I brought it up that I knew he had something to do with it, and he agreed with me. And then the video ends!

 

[Oregonmama]

I want to post the tweets in the live thread

 

[katydid23]

Her answer starts after the question at 17 minutes. Darn it this video ends in the middle of her answering that question at 17 minutes and 33 seconds.

part 2

 

[beach]

I say we stay in the verdict thread and keep discussions in there.

Agreed. Will lock this until end of day. We can post theories, etc. after court recesses today.

 

[beach]

ACK! I forgot this one was locked when I closed the livestream thread. Sorry. I will fire myself.

 

[MsJosie]

ACK! I forgot this one was locked when I closed the livestream thread. Sorry. I will fire myself.

Well, we all just rehired you!

 

[JenaTaoson]

Well, we all just rehired you!

Lol, indeed!

 

[Oregonmama]

A lot to process for the jury but they seem like a 9 to 5 jury.

 

[MsArk]

A lot to process for the jury but they seem like a 9 to 5 jury.

I know what Beach says about not trying to read too much into jury deliberations but man, I admit I am nervous. It is just so obvious to those of us who have followed for 4+ years. Plus, Floridian jurors kind of scare me anyway.

 

[Oregonmama]

I know what Beach says about not trying to read too much into jury deliberations but man, I admit I am nervous. It is just so obvious to those of us who have followed for 4+ years. Plus, Floridian jurors kind of scare me anyway.

I think one of the reporters said a good handful of jurors were retirees when the jury was accepted. I am sure they had a lot to absorb today in re to the jury instructions. Lets hope tomorrow is verdict day!

 

[Arachne 1]

Been Done Before

I'm pretty sure that plenty of defendants have been found GUILTY IN ALL CATEGORIES, before. The jurors don't have to be so shy about it.

 

[beach]

Okay, hope this calms some nerves and helps paint a picture of what its like to be on a jury of a major case with high stakes -

I only got interested in law after serving on a jury. It was a brutal child molestation case. The defendant was the 24 year old son of an extremely prominent family in the second largest city in Alabama. Everyone knew this family. He was facing a possible sentence of 25 - life. I cannot begin to adequately express the weight of the responsibility knowing that you and 11 others hold a 24 year old kids' life in your hands. It is enormous. You feel it all day & night. It is pretty much all you can think about. Then, you think about the victim. And the victim's family. You want to give them the justice they deserve. ALL you can think about is getting it right. So many lives you are about to affect. You want to make the right decision. We are all keyboard warriors on here, but it is VERY different in that jury room, when it is you charged with making the decision.

That trial had 8 days of testimony. When we first went back to deliberate, which was about 2:00pm, we took a vote to see where we were. First vote was 10 Not Guilty - 2 Guilty. We deliberated for another 3 hours. Returned the next morning and immediately the foreman suggested we take another vote. Lo and behold, this one was 7 Guilty - 5 Not Guilty. (sometimes you just need rest and a chance to absorb everything). By the end of the 2nd day, we were 10 Guilty - 2 Not Guilty. Morning of the 3rd day we were at 11-1. We finally reached a verdict around lunch time that day. (For the record, I was one of the 2 original guilty votes. lol) I was lucky in that we had a very good jury who respected each other. No one ever got mad at anyone else or pressured them to change their vote. We simply offered why we believed the way we did. The burden is real, folks. It is heavy.

When it was all over, we were all thrilled to find out that this guy had been arrested 8 prior times for molestation. However, when the parents found out that they had retained the highest profile defense attorney in the area who had a reputation for being brutal but winning acquittals for his clients, they refused to press charges because they didn't want their children to be subjected to trial & his cross-exam. We weren't permitted to know any of that before, so we were all SO relieved and that was when we knew for a fact we had made the right decision.

 

[Arachne 1]

That is a beautiful story, Beach.

 

[Kakidoll]

@beach Thank you for that. I too was on a jury, not anywhere NEAR what this is, it was a grand theft (auto) and 3 days of testimony. I went in PRO PRO PRO law enforcement. I had worked with and grew up with LE so i'm very 'tough' on criminals. I never thought i'd even make it TO a jury with my background, but they took me. When we went to deliberate, i was voted fore(wo)man. we took first vote, it was 9 guilty, 3 not guilty. I was one of the not guilty, surprisingly. We took 2 days, went over evidence and dates which where VERY important in this case, as it had to do with towing a car and selling it after. We ended up with NOT GUILTY because even tho the 'victim' came off as such, she lied, multiple times on what she did and didn't do. The proof was in the statements, the evidence and the whole timeline. While i felt sorry for her, it was HER fault the car was 'stolen' (sold at auction to the towing company, which i did have an issue with, but was legal) and thought she could come in and change the facts. I NEVER thought i'd end up that way. It was hard but it was the RIGHT decision. And he LOOKED like a criminal, had a criminal past, but in THIS instance, ti was NOT proven that he did anything illegal. Sometimes you have to just sit back and go thru it again and again to cross the T's and dot the I's to get the final verdict.

 

[beach]

That is a beautiful story, Beach.

Thank you.

Funny anecdote to that story -
The judge that presided over that case was the person who influenced me to get into law. After we were dismissed, the prosecution came to us and thanked us. Asked questions about what we felt they did right, things they should've done differently, basic feedback. I wanted to speak to the judge and I told the state prosecutor. I was so mad at him. Mad, mad, mad! And he was going to know it before I left that courthouse. lol (I was young, folks. Young & dumb. And, obviously, bold as hell. lol) Anyway, the judge had allowed the defense to cross-exam this precious, absolutely adorable 8 year old little boy on for almost 2 days. I was livid that that child had to endure that. Well, the judge came out and invited me into his chambers to talk. He let me fuss at him, while trying not to smile. He explained to me that if he had not permitted it, that the child would have had to go through it all over again. (Mistrial, appeal, etc...) So, okay. I was still mad but I guessed he probably knew what he was doing. He asked me then if I had ever thought about getting in the legal field. I thought he was crazy. All I wanted was to get out of that courthouse. haha

About 2 months later I ran into him in a small neighborhood pub. Sitting at the bar, drinking a beer. He recognized me and waved me over. That night he talked me into giving it a try. Offered me a job in his brother's law firm. Started the next week. And here I am, a whole bunch of years later with an ABA certification in paralegal studies. I still do a little work, but basically retired from the rat race now. You never know what life is going to throw your way.

Edited to correct child's age.

 

[beach]

Oh, another funny! That night at the bar, he admitted that he had his JA get the trash can out of our room each night so he could look through the votes taken. HAHAHA