Blagojevich's Jury Appears Deadlocked
The jury assessing the guilt of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is reportedly deadlocked on some of the charges:
CHICAGO — Jurors in the corruption trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said Thursday that they have reached agreement on just two of 24 counts against him, indicating that they could have a long way to go in analyzing the complex case.
The judge immediately said he would tell them to go back and deliberate some more.
Jurors gave no indication of what decision they had reached on the two counts where they did agree.
They said they have not discussed 11 counts of wire fraud, many of which involve telephone conversations that were taped by the FBI. Many of those discussions relate to the allegation that Blagojevich attempted to sell or trade President Barack Obama's old Senate seat.
The communication from jurors indicated that they have discussed the remaining 11 counts and appear to be deadlocked on them.
Blagojevich and his co-defendant brother listened intently, sitting at the edge of their chairs, as the presiding judge read the jury note. After the hearing adjourned, the ex-governor quickly smiled in a huddle with attorneys. He put his arms around his wife Patti's shoulder.
"I would be foolish to speculate what a jury will do," one of Blagojevich's attorneys, Sam Adam Sr., told reporters at the courthouse.
Legal analyst Terry Sullivan said the fact the jury has reached consensus on only two counts is "very good news for the defense so far."
But he said just because they haven't voted on 11 wire fraud counts doesn't mean they haven't considered them because the alleged acts of wire fraud are part of the first count, racketeering.
"They had to have at least considered mail and wire fraud," Sullivan, a Chicago attorney and former prosecutor, said in an interview on WGN-TV.
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