Posted on 08/11/2010 2:47:03 PM PDT by RummyChick
Doesn’t it just take one holdout to stall a conviction?
I am sure Blago’s team had at least one bought and paid for jury member before the trial started.
Giving Fits to Fitzy-—hot shot, big shot loyyyyyyyyyeeerrrrr lookin’ more like a small time loser these days.
more just added to the story:
“
Zagel thought the note was important enough to summon Rod and Robert Blagojevich and their lawyers to court. He summoned them sometime after 2:00 p.m., they arrived closer to 4 p.m.
It’s unclear where the jury stands at this moment. They could be deadlocked on all, or just a few of the 24 charges facing Blagojevich.
The note and the aftermath likely means more deliberation from jurors and does not signal an end in sight.
Prior to the open court session, the judge, jury and attorneys spent 15 minutes in a closed door session. The attorneys have been ordered not to disclose what was said during that session.
Michael Ettinger, the lead attorney for Rod Blagojevich’s brother, said nobody had any idea what the jury was thinking.
“I understood [the note] to mean they couldn’t make a decision,” said Ettinger in the lobby of Dirksen Federal Court building. “We don’t know what it means, the judge doesn’t know what it means.”
Too bad he didn’t on Scooter.
If I was Blago, I might start with securing the services of competent counsel. The idiot he had didn't do him any favors.
We all did. It's the Chicago way.
Yep.
** Ping!
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Please let it be deadlocked...please let it be deadlocked...
I’m hoping for a deadlock - that just extends the embarrassment to zerO - oh wait, nothing embarrasses that a$$hole.....but maybe the defense WILL call Jesse Race Baiter Jackson Jr for the next go around.....pass the popcorn!
“Looks like the fix is in, ehh?” I was thinking exactly the same thing. All you need to do is get to one of them.
Youk don’t understand the ONE IRON RULE OF WASHINGTON, DC JUSTICE: All evidence to the contrary notwithstanding, any white, patriotic Republican is GUILTY!!
OTOH Don't forget that Mooch-shell baby sat JJJ, and is call SIS by the siblings. Mooch-shell ROBINSON Obama and Jesse ROBINSON (His biological father was Noah Robinson) ancestors are all from the Friends Plantation area.
WE ARE FAMILY.....
Well, we don't know how many charges are yet to be resolved. It could be all but one. John Gotti beat no less than five "slam dunks" - not just hung juries, but outright acquittals. When you have a superstar criminal defense attorney, like Gotti had in Bruce Cutler, amazing courtroom feats become less amazing - they become commonplace.
Blago - for reasons yet untold - picked an attorney who had almost zero experience at the federal bar. He missed a number of procedural opportunities, and completely ignored an opening to push the blame by calling Jesse Jackson, Jr. He also never found a way to lay the foundation to call Obama - even though Obama spent two hours speaking to federal investigators.
I'll be interested to read the trial transcript as well as the books that will surely be written on the trial, but I'm wagering they won't paint Blago's counsel in very good light.
..more like the underside of the Obama bus is full right now, no room for Blogoyovitch
Fitzie .... some sure fire, slam dunk, done deal, huh ?
Wondering if anyone got to a juror ... we’re talking
about Chicago here.
Videos - Chicago news analysis from last night
(top right- top two)
Two former US attorneys are asked about his
unethical presser when Blago was indicted in
the 2nd one.
http://www.wttw.com/main.taf?p=42,8,80
_____________________________________________________
Trial news today
_____________________________________________________
No word from Rod Blagojevich as he leaves the courthouse
By Sarah Ostman on August 11, 2010 5:18 PM
###
Rod Blagojevich has left the Dirksen Federal Building after learning that the jury in his federal corruption trial may be deadlocked on some or all of the counts against him.
The ex-governor kept unusually hush-hush as he left the building, walking past a huge crowd of media without saying a word. He did pause briefly outside to shake hands with well-wishers.
“Thank you,” Blagojevich waved as he got in his car.
A few paces behind, Blagojevich’s lawyer Sam Adam Sr. was asked, “Did you understand that note?”
“No, of course not,” he said.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Attorney: Jury is “hopelessly deadlocked” on every count that involves an act
###
Jurors said in their note that they are “hopelessly deadlocked” on every count that involves an act, an attorney for Robert Blagojevich told the media after court.
Lawyers are now scratching their heads, trying to figure out what that means, attorney Michael Ettinger said in a press conference at around 4:50 p.m.
The jury might be saying they are “hopelessly deadlocked” on the racketeering charges, Ettinger speculated. That’s a lengthy and complicated charge that is divided into six separate “acts.”
Attorneys saw the entire note sent out by the jury earlier today; only portions were read in court a little while ago. Judge James Zagel has responded in writing, asking the jury for clarification.
Ettinger responded with “I don’t know” over and over again when asked if he thinks the jury’s note meant they were deadlocked on every count or just some.
He did say, “I think they’re hung” — but quickly clarified, “I don’t know. I’m just guessing.”
Meanwhile, the jury has gone home for the day. Lawyers will be back in court at 11 a.m. tomorrow.
~~~~~~~~~~
Blagojevich jury: We can’t reach a unanimous decision; Judge to ask for more details on their deadlock
###
Jurors told Judge James Zagel in a note that they have been unable to reach a unanimous decision on some or all counts and asked for guidance on how to proceed.
Zagel read the note aloud in court with a nervous-looking Rod Blagojevich looking on. The jury was not in the courtroom.
“We have gone beyond reasonable attempts” to reach a unanimous decision and “now ask for guidance,” the note said.
Zagel said he was unclear on whether the jury had been able to reach a unanimous decision on any of the counts, and wanted to respond in writing asking them for clarification.
He proposed responding with a note saying, in part, “You should determine if you can reach a verdict on some of the counts.”
The note asks them which counts, if any, the jury has been able to agree on, and also explains that it’s “permissible” for them to submit a unanimous decision on some counts and be deadlocked on others.
The prosecution and defense agreed.
“We’re fine with that,” one of the prosecutors said.
“No objection,” the Blagojeviches’ lawyers said.
“I’ll give this to the jury and we’ll see what happens,” the judge said.
Zagel closed by praising the jurors as “exceptionally disciplined” and said the jury room has been quiet throughout their 11 days of deliberating.
“If there is shouting or loud voices, you can tell. There has been none of this in this case.
The jury is, at least from my point of view, exceptionally disciplined,” the judge said.
“I think on one occasion, a juror called in saying they would be late. In fact, they weren’t late,” he continued.
The jury had planned to go home for the night, Zagel told the court, so they will likely not be able to respond until Thursday morning.
Rod Blagojevich appeared straight-faced in the courtroom, keeping his hands folded in front of him. After court, he smiled faintly and shook hands with his lawyer and clapped him on the back.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Rod and Patti Blagojevich arrive in court
By Sarah Ostman on August 11, 2010 3:55 PM
###
Rod and Patti Blagojevich have just arrived at the federal courthouse, along with Patti’s brother, Rich. The ex-governor was all smiles as he walked in, but when reporters asked how he was feeling, he gave a one-word answer: “Butterflies.”
Upstairs on the 25th floor, the media is still cordoned off in the hall outside the courtroom.
“Missed you guys,” Rod said as he walked past them.
About 15 minutes later, at about 4:05, Robert Blagojevich and his wife, Julie, have arrived. Sound is up and running in the overflow courtroom, and the judge is entering the courtroom.
There’s a heavy tension in the courtroom. Rod looks nervous. He’s fiddling with something, fixing his hair. Patti appears exhausted, showing deep circles under her eyes.
Robert and his attorney appear more relaxed, though Robert just let out a big sigh.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Rod and Robert Blagojevich expected in court shortly; media still waiting
By Sarah Ostman on August 11, 2010 3:19 PM |
###
Ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his brother, Robert, are expected to arrive at the Dirksen Federal Building shortly. Barricades have been put up on Dearborn Street and reporters and camera crews are slowly gathering outside.
It’s an unexpected development in what seemed at first to be — and which could still turn out to be — a simple court hearing about a jury question.
But the fact that the defendants were asked to show up does raise some eyebrows. Court personnel has not said anything about a verdict — they normally do, when one is reached.
If the jury reveals that it is deadlocked, Judge James Zagel will likely tell them to keep deliberating and do their best to come up with a verdict.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Lawyers meet privately with judge; media awaits hearing on jury question
By Sarah Ostman on August 11, 2010 2:20 PM
###
A crowd of reporters has gathered on the 25th floor of the Dirksen Federal Building, awaiting a 2:30 public hearing about a jury question.
But in the meantime, something a bit out of the ordinary — attorneys are having a closed-door conference with Judge James Zagel. They were told to meet him in the courtroom at 2 p.m.
We don’t know if they’re privately discussing the jury’s question before it is made public in open court, or if they’re talking about something else entirely. But it certainly has the media abuzz with the possibilities.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Blagojevich jury has a question — lawyers told to come to court at 2:30
By Natasha Korecki on August 11, 2010 11:47 AM
###
Jurors in Rod Blagojevich’s case have communicated with the judge for the first time in more than a week, saying they have a question, according to lawyers in the case.
Attorneys were told to be at the courthouse this afternoon and were not told that their clients must also attend.
The question comes on Day 11 of deliberations and eight days after the 12-member panel last communicated with the judge in the case.
The last communication from jurors came on July 30th when they asked for all the trial’s testimony.
Judge James Zagel denied that request but told the panel he would be open to handing out the testimony of specific witnesses.
*** Since our first post, the clerk’s office issued an alert saying there is a 2:30 p.m. hearing in the case.
Lawyers say the note from jurors is a question and not a verdict.
http://blogs.suntimes.com/blago/
** Ping!
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