HUNG JURY! David McKay is Free (For Now)

** eventhough the testimony seemed to point towards persuasion by FBI informant Darby, many still felt McKay would be found guilty.. so this is a big win for dissent and those speaking out against injustice and corrupt government.


UPDATE 7pm: Bond was posted and McKay walked out of jail for the first time in 5 months this evening.

The case of United States vs. David McKay was declared a mistrial Monday afternoon when the jury was unable to reach a verdict. McKay was granted a conditional release, provided $25,000 bail or $2,500 bond can be posted. Unless the charges are dropped, a re-trial will commence on March 16.

After the jury confirmed it was unable to reach a unanimous decision and a mistrial was declared, prosecutor Asst. U.S. Attorney Paulsen requested that jurors not be permitted to talk to media, that McKay be held in custody, and that McKay be retried within 70 days.

Defense attorney Jeff DeGree asked that the judge put together a set of conditions under which McKay would be released, noting that McKay's father had attended the trial and would house McKay, and that he would have employment in Austin with his aunt's firm.

McKay's release was granted on several conditions laid out by Judge Davis: that he not commit crimes nor be arrested; that he reside with his father in Midland, TX until suitable housing elsewhere is approved by pretrial services; that he not threaten through any medium Brandon Darby or any of the other witnesses in the case; that he surrender his passport to pretrial services; that he not leave the state of Texas except to go to and from Minnesota; and that he submit to drug testing and be taken back into custody if he misses a drug test.

Judge Davis then set the date for a re-trial for March 16. The trial may be moved from the federal building in Minneapolis to the federal building in St. Paul, due to anticipated construction.

Earlier in the day, the jury had sent a question to the judge asking for access to the trial transcripts. Specifically, they asked for access to Brandon Darby's testimony regarding the August 31 meeting before the group, without Darby, went to Wal-Mart for the supplies from which the molotov cocktails were allegedly made. They also asked for FBI Special Agent Tim Sellers' testimony about a June 8 email from Darby, in which Darby expressed that he hopes "enough eyes and ears" would be placed on the case so that he can "get away," and that he was profoundly offended" by the Austin Affinity Group.

In response to the question, prosecutor Paulsen asked the court read the transcripts to the jury, but DeGree objected, and the transcripts were not read.



UPDATE 4 PM MONDAY 2/2: NO VERDICT: MISTRIAL via HUNG JURY. Wow... McKay can be released on $25K bail or $2.5K security bond, return to Midland TX with these conditions: no arrests, no crimes, reside at father's home, don't threaten Darby or other witnesses, surrender passport, not to leave Texas except to come back to Minnesota, and submit to drug testing. Judge sets new trial for March 16th 9:30AM. More details to follow @ tc.indymedia.org.

UPDATE 2:40 PM MONDAY 2/2: Yes folks, still no verdict. Latest: Jurors want transcripts of testimony, which they usually can't get, and probably won't be able to this time. Still standing by...

After 10 hours of deliberation spanning two days, the jury in United States vs. David McKay has yet to reach a verdict. The question before the jury is whether or not McKay was entrapped by Brandon Darby, activist turned FBI informant, to possess unregistered destructive devices (count 1), illegally manufacture the devices (count 2), and possess such devices that had no serial number (count 3). For the entrapment defense to succeed, the jury must decide that Darby "induced or persuaded" McKay to commit the crime, and that McKay had no "intent or disposition" to do so before meeting Darby for the first time at the beginning of March, 2008.

After seven prosecution witnesses and three witnesses for the defense, including McKay himself, closing arguments in the dramatic trial concluded Thursday. Since then, members of McKay's family, supporters, media and interested observers waited anxiously for a result in the lobby of the courthouse. Now they'll have to continue waiting at least until the jury resumes deliberations at 8:30 on Monday. (More details in story below.)

http://www.startribune.com/local/38825597.html

RNC defendant released for now
A hung jury means a Texas man accused of making Molotov cocktails can go home until his new trial starts in March.

A jury of eight women and three men told the judge that they had no hope of reaching a verdict, prompting a mistrial.

But by noon Monday, the jury had another request. They asked the court for transcripts of Darby's testimony from Aug. 31, when, according to McKay, he and McKay and Crowder talked about the Molotov cocktails. The jury also asked for June e-mails between Darby and the FBI special agent with whom he had been in contact for months. Jurors specifically wanted to see an e-mail in which Darby mentioned his desire to keep working for the FBI.

The judge declined to give the jury those transcripts. "You must make a decision based on what you recall as evidence," he told the jury. (( I haven't been on a Jury before, I thought you could always see the transcripts.. seems like they would want you to be sure you recall the testimony correctly))

Looks like the jurists didn't fall for it.