The jury in the Farwell trial is deadlocked after more than ten hours of deliberation. I would argue that outcomes like this are less surprising than you might think.
Trial lawyers are trained to believe that well-built cases, delivered by credible, skilled, and likable advocates to reasonable people, carry the day. But that only works if you truly understand your jurors.
Some jurors come in with an agenda, and some are good at hiding it (many are not). The vast majority of jurors may not even realize the kind of opinions and implicit biases they carry with them. Standard voir dire questions miss many of these. A strong case and a skilled, likable advocate do not protect against that.
Understanding who is actually in the jury box and why is a separate skill from trying a case.
Jury deliberations often take a lot of time and frequently factions develop in the jury room. Even federal ones, from time to time. Many juries that initially claim they are deadlocked ultimately reach verdicts. Others don't. But everyone should be aware of what this always was: a messy case that never has had any business being tried in federal court with creative charges. A federal case under the obstruction of justice statute always was going to be far more complicated than simply proving a murder, thanks to the pathetic (lack of) investigation by the state authorities. Having to disprove a suicide, provide an actual, specific motive of silencing a witness to a crime (which is unnecessary in a state court murder trial but required here because this is an obstruction of justice offense due to federal law's limited jurisdiction), and establishing a "reasonable likelihood" that there could have been a federal investigation--all beyond a reasonable doubt--is much trickier than a standard state court murder investigation and prosecution seeking to prove "A killed B." The federal case had to be creative and difficult because of the state. This was always messy but not yet a hung jury. Hopefully Sandra Birchmore receives the justice she deserves, whether in this case, at a retrial or even after what should have happened years ago: a competent and credible state investigation.
This documentary is going to unite all of the FKR supporters who have been divided over the last year and a half. It’s also going to drive God knows how many new eyeballs to my content so they can see the truth. I am so grateful that they were stupid enough to do this.
@ChrisCoons YOU WON BY DEFAULT. Don't get it twisted. You didn't win bc you're better. You won bc I didn't vote. We don't want corruption. Get a fcking clue. Would you?!