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Jury in Gentrys' trial still out after 3 weeks This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press June 1, 2000 By ALAN SCHNEPF Valley Press Staff Writer VAN NUYS - Although the jury in the manslaughter trial of Michael and Kathleen Gentry has been deliberating since May 12, it has yet to decide if the Lake Los Angeles couple is responsible for the 1996 death of their 15-year-old daughter. After Wednesday's proceedings, the wait for a verdict may drag on even longer. For reasons neither the defense nor prosecution would discuss, a juror was excused Wednesday afternoon and replaced with an alternate. That marked the second juror to be replaced since deliberations began. The first alternate was brought in May 19 after the court excused an original member of the jury who had a prior obligation and permission to leave if proceedings were not finished by that date. Alternate jurors hear all the testimony during trial, but do not participate in deliberations until they are brought in to replace jurors. When a new juror is brought in, deliberations technically are supposed to start over from the beginning, although some experts say juries sometimes have the tendency to gloss over the content in the interest of expediency. Prosecutor Kathy Cady claims the Gentrys failed to feed their physically and mentally disabled daughter, Lindsay. Cady says that failure caused Lindsay Gentry to whither down to the 44 pounds she weighed at the time of her death. Lindsay Gentry stood 4 feet, 10 inches tall when she died. The Gentrys and their three lawyers counter that myotonic dystrophy - a rare neurological disease Lindsay from which suffered - is what caused her demise. One law professor says the long deliberation period should be an encouraging sign to the defense. Robert Pugsley, a criminal law professor at the Southwestern University School of Law, said as a rule of thumb, long deliberations more often than not indicate things will come out in favor of the defense. Pugsley said the deliberations, which have lasted more than half as long as the month of witness testimony, may signal an outcome similar to that of the Gentrys' murder trial last year. That proceeding ended in a mistrial, with 10 of the 12 jurors favoring acquittal. "The rule of thumb, which is sometimes broken, is that the longer it goes on, the better it is for the defense," Pugsley said. He speculated that one or more of the jurors may be holding out, while others try to persuade the minority to reverse their opinion so the jury can reach the required unanimous verdict. "There must be some kind of split that's causing a logjam," Pugsley said. Pugsley's take on the case is speculation since no one outside of the jurors has knowledge of what is blocking the road to a verdict. The law professor said the jury also seems to be performing its job in a conscientious manner because of its requests for testimony readbacks and questions about the instructions presented to it by the court. Those instructions also may be slowing the process of reaching a verdict. Superior Court Judge John Fisher noted in court that instructions relating to whether the word "willfully" should be applied to certain parts of the law have been changed twice since deliberations began. "That speaks well for them," Pugsley said of the jury's questions about the instructions. Fisher said he has not made an inquiry to the jury about the lengthy deliberations. Pugsley said a combination of jury thoroughness, the replacements and the possibility of one or more holdouts may be adding up to the lack of a verdict three weeks into deliberations. "It is somewhat unusual," he said. "Not unprecedented, but certainly unusual." |
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