Verdict Watch

[gracielee]

I will say that the utter lack of a tough cross examination surprised me.

Substitute 'shocked the hell out of me'. :maddening:

 

[No Coincidence]

ITA X 100000 with your post.

Thanks Evelyn! I was on a jury in which I was chosen to be the foreperson. I won't state my specific demographic but I think it'd surprise ya'll. Anyhow, I had to deliberately, continuously, and vigorously state and restate that "possible" does not equate to "reasonable". I'd be willing to bet everything that the foreperson was NG, or severly challeneged in the leadership area, hence the lack of emphasis and assertiveness around this substantially significant difference in words.

 

[borndem]

I hope it's with a different prosecution team. BH should be OUT IMO. I wonder if it will be with Judge Stephens again?

Probably it will be JS again -- it could be that he could assign it to someone else, perhaps. That will be interesting. He's eligible for retirement, he just hasn't done it yet. Who knoze?

 

[borndem]

Ms. Young is probably tickled pink and now JY probably thinks he can sell ice to Eskimos!

JMHO
fran

Dayam good salesman, huh, Fran?! mumble, mumble, mumble

 

[Just the Fax]

The only thing that came out of that special was AL had no idea what the jury split was. Guess that will leak very soon by one of the jurors.

 

[borndem]

It could have been 8 G and 4 NG. I just think it might be easier to move 2 folks to NG. But, in any case it was a Hung Jury. At least both sides know what to expect next time. Doubt his testifying will surprise the prosecution next time.

If there's a 2nd trial (please, please, please -- Michelle & Baby R deserve it as do LF and MF) -- it should be different at least in some respects -- they may not put him up there again. Why give the ADAs a second chance?

 

[borndem]

I surely hope we find out though, Madeleine. I would love to know the breakdown of the vote.

AL will need it for her book -- maybe she won't make us buy the book to find out.

 

[cody100]

Well, perhaps, I see things differently from some of you. I do not blame the end result on poor leadership in the jury, lack of understanding in the law, gender biased, or "so called uneducated jurors." MOO Instead, I think some jurors look at evidence or lack of evidence differently, and it is perfectly alright to have jury members stay strong to their beliefs.

Perhaps, we should look at the gaps in the evidence, excellent defense tactics, closing arguments, and weakly presented evidence in places. This will not be the first case to be retried. And, btw, most retrials are successful.

MOO

 

[borndem]

I thought the case was strong too. Guess this jury showed us!

I'm still in shock!

JMHO
fran

PS>....I'm not saying the jury is wrong, just that they may not have understood everything. Sometimes I think that's a disadvantage that we Websleuthers have. We know the case inside out before the trial even begins. Sometimes that can make it difficult for us to understand how the jury could reach or not reach a certain conclusion as evidenced by the verdict. There's things we know not put into evidence, that may have influenced them, and who knows why the pros didn't use it. Or they may have been denied to use it...

Good point, Fran.

Many of us have followed this case since the media announced the death, years ago -- and on this site which is so full of info as well as perceptive and varied insights by all kinds of posters. The jury, which should have known very little about it when they came into it, had the case for, what, 3 weeks?

 

[cody100]

Excellent points, Fran. I think the next trial could be different. I do feel for the Fishers. This has got to be a blow.

 

[RaleighNative]

I'm sure they will retry JY. Any thoughts on the points below?

-It did seem to me the pros was not prepared for JY to testify and to cross. In a new trial, do you think JY would testify again? If he does, they can counter everything he testified to in the first trial, correct?
-While I agree JY testifying may have been a game changer in this case, do you think jurors were turned off by him? I can't imagine they didn't retch at his fake crying on cue.
-Do you think the gas mileage question was something the jury couldnt' get past? I think next time the pros HAS to get that issue down. And they may need to cut the testimony of the gas station attendant.
-That darned second shoe! I know the pros could imply there may have been a second person, but I find that hard to believe.
-Do you think the same ADA's will prosecute in the second trial, or will the DA change it up? I would think between this hung jury and the BC verdict, the Wake County DA may be concerned about his reelection next time around.

 

[cody100]

If he does testify, I am sure he will have the transcript to refresh what he said. Apparently, he was believable to them. I thought his fake crying on cue was horribly contrived. Perhaps they did not all feel that way.

Gas mileage/purchases have to be resolved. Gas station lady got confused. I think their showing her only one pic hurt them as well.

Yes, he might have worn the second shoe, but it is again asking the jury to believe that was the case.

No, I think they will use different DA's or at least one different DA. CW is very popular and competent. I think they will tighten down things before retrial. I hope so.

 

[ohiogirl]

Pat Young certainly seems pleased with the outcome.

Who in the **** does she think murdered her daugher in law, if not her son.
If he is innocent, there is a violent murderer out there that no one in this family even asked LE to find. This is ridiculous, and the DA's office should be embarrassed, imo.

They did a horrible job and a murderer walks free. jmo and all that jazz.

 

[Luna24]

I've been sick to my stomach about this all day..I can't even imagine how Linda and Meredith are feeling tonight. I don't think I can follow another case closely - this is just too upsetting.

 

[borndem]

Granted, we are no longer in Raleigh, but I really haven't heard any more about the Brad Cooper trial since the verdict came down? Has it been in the news? We don't get the N&O anymore. They don't include the ads and coupons in the version we received out here in the boonies, so I canceled the paper. But we do watch either WRAL or WTVD news everyday and I follow the channels online.

Nope, glee -- the Cooper case is won and done from what I can see.

I have not seen or read any follow-up or interviews of the jurors or principals -- nothing of which I am aware anyway. It may be because of the JY trial being so close on its heels, but I can't really recall noticeable follow-up of any WC murder trial around here in quite some time. But that's from my little backyard perspective. Perhaps others have seen some...

 

[happy2binNC]

Gracielee, I'm in Cary and haven't heard a word about BC since about a week after he took a ride over to his new home on Western Blvd.


Things I'd like to see addressed by the prosecution in the retrial, assuming they are allowed to introduce these items as evidence:
- the garbage bags on the kitchen counter/trash cabinet left open
- emails to JLY's sister where he says he hopes there will "never be an arrest"
- any information about this accident JLY supposedly witnessed. There has to be a record of it, and if he was really the "first responder" his name should be in a police report or insurance record somewhere
- more emphasis on the missing clothes. Bring in an expert if needed to show the different necklines. I realize the pros was caught by surprise on that one -- that photo was introduced just before the defense rested
- info on the $2M insurance policy I've heard existed

I'm sure I'll think of more, but these are just a few things I'd read about that I wished had been addressed by the prosecutors. They also need to pick apart JLY's testimony and find anything they can possibly discredit. Whether it's calling a witness to refute what he said, or simply coming up with ways to get him to contradict himself should he take the stand again, they need to be ready for him next time.

 

[borndem]

I'm watching the WRAL special. Seems to be the consensus that it was a BRILLIANT move to have the def testify. They also feel it was a surprise to the pros and they weren't really prepared for it.

I think they're right.

What a shame. He can keep quiet for 1693 days and speaks for a few hours and gets himself a mistrial.

Go figure,
fran

Yep, I heard it, too. And yes, go figure!

But I WILL say this, and it's pretty strong for chicken-chit moi. :chicken:

If the ADAs didn't prepare for the remote, never-happen-in-a-million-years, no-way, not-possible DT move of putting JY on the stand, then that's the most egregious, near-incompetent, and costly error on the part of a prosecution team that I have ever seen, IMHO. It was certainly not their only oversight either, seems to me. :doh:

I think a mock cross examination for the ADAs to toss back & forth would not only be very valuable for their case in general, it could be quite revealing to them, and it also would have just been a bit of fun, too. Who short-sighted that one, I wonder?

 

[evelyn24]

Who in the **** does she think murdered her daugher in law, if not her son.
If he is innocent, there is a violent murderer out there that no one in this family even asked LE to find. This is ridiculous, and the DA's office should be embarrassed, imo.

They did a horrible job and a murderer walks free. jmo and all that jazz.

I agree but he's not going to walk free. I would bet on a re-trial. The prosecutors need to be a little more assertive, articulate, and confident in the next trial.

 

[evelyn24]

I've been sick to my stomach about this all day..I can't even imagine how Linda and Meredith are feeling tonight. I don't think I can follow another case closely - this is just too upsetting.

I feel the same way after today.

 

[borndem]

Perhaps next time, the pros can contact the emergency services in the area JY claims to have allegedly held someone's finger that had been in an accident, while the victim lay going in and out of consciousness. Think about it! How ridiculous does it sound that he was the first responder and he held his finger to help him, so he went home to look up head trauma!

Seriously, does that make any sense?

LOL, I didn't think so either.

fran
:waitasec:

And I guess his attorneys told him not to talk to anyone, thus he didn't call 911, even tho he was "first responder." :liar: