Christopher Taylor deadly conduct trial: Jury deliberations continue for third day
AUSTIN, Texas - Jury deliberations in the trial of Christopher Taylor have reached a third day. He is charged with deadly conduct in the 2019 shooting death of Mauris DeSilva.
On Friday, there was a hearing about some jurors observed by the bailiff to be on their phones and laptops during deliberations. One juror asked how he was supposed to "close contracts" and that he was losing money.
The defense called for a mistrial, which the judge denied. She ordered the court to provide 12 copies of jury instructions to the jurors.
As jurors continue their days-long deliberation, this echoes the last trial of Christopher Taylor last fall. He was on trial for the 2020 death of Michael Ramos.
That ended with a mistrial after four days of deliberation, and the jury couldn't agree on a verdict. A new grand jury didn't reindict Taylor in that case.
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Charlie Baird, an attorney unaffiliated with Taylor's case, is a retired district court judge. He says deliberation times often depend on the length of the trial, but if the jury can't come to a unanimous decision, the judge has great discretion on when to declare a mistrial. The judge obviously does not want to declare a mistrial and have to try the case again," he said.
He says there are several factors that would go into that decision.
"What the judge typically looks for is, first, the length of the deliberations. Secondly, the judge might inquire about the split," he said. "The judge would also look for notes from the jury. If the jury sends out a note that says we are deadlocked or hopelessly deadlocked, then that is an indication to the judge that a mistrial should be granted," he said.
The judge could also read an Allen charge to the jury, which essentially tells them to try harder to reach a verdict.
"The judge always waits to be prompted by the jury before the mistrial is declared," Baird said.
The jury will continue deliberations on Saturday, Oct. 5.