Jurors in the Kwame Kilpatrick corruption case finished a sixth day of deliberations without reaching a verdict in the City Hall corruption case.
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Kwame Kilpatrick leaving federal court in Detroit on Friday 2.15.13. Jurors were urged today to send Kwame Kilpatrick, his father Bernard and contractor Bobby Ferguson to prison for “breathtaking corruption” that cheated taxpayers across Metro Detroit. Jury deliberations will begin in earnest Tuesday in federal court following a five-month trial featuring testimony from more than 80 witnesses in one of the country’s largest public corruption cases in decades. (David Coates/The Detroit News)
Jurors punched out Tuesday without reaching a verdict in the Kwame Kilpatrick corruption trial after about 32 hours of deliberations.
The sixth day of deliberations was the most eventful as the anonymous jurors were ushered into the courtroom to ask a question about racketeering — the nuclear bomb of the corruption case — and extortion.
Today, we learned the jury foreman is a dude. And we realized the anonymous panelists have great eyes for detail and would make great copy editors.
We would hire them, but they hate us.
Jurors will return to federal court — snow be damned — at 9 a.m. tomorrow.
Kwame Kilpatrick outside court with defense lawyer James C. Thomas
A brief hearing Tuesday in the corruption trial offered insight into the jury and apparent progress made by the panel after approximately 28 hours of deliberations.
The jury foreman is one of four male jurors, according to U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds. There are eight women and four men in the jury, which includes five blacks and a Hispanic.
The jury appears to be closely scrutinizing the 38-count indictment against former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, his father Bernard and contractor Bobby Ferguson.
The jury’s question, which prompted today’s hearing, focused on the most serious count facing the trio, racketeering conspiracy, which is a 20-year felony.
Jurors also asked a question about one of the extortion charges, specifically count #7 — an apparent sign of progress made by the jury after deliberations that have spanned six days.
Jurors were dressed casually in jeans, pullovers and T-shirts, a noticeable shift from more formal attire during the five-month trial.
U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds will let jurors in the Kwame Kilpatrick trial leave early today if the anticipated snow storm wreaks havoc on Detroit roads during the evening rush hour.
But if jurors are hoping for a snow day tomorrow, fuhgettaboutit.
Federal court has closed one time in the past 10 years due to snow, according to a court spokesman.
Kwame Kilpatrick and Bobby Ferguson outside federal court.
Jurors in the Kwame Kilpatrick corruption trial had a technical question Tuesday about the wording of charges listed in the 38-count indictment.
The question related to wording that was slightly different in the racketeering charge against the former Detroit mayor, his father and contractor Bobby Ferguson, and an extortion count against Kilpatrick and Ferguson.
The 20-year felonies are based on the same alleged misconduct, U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds told jurors.
U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds
The judge told jurors the counts are separate and independent of each other.
The extortion charge referred to by jurors is count #7 in the indictment.
Kilpatrick and Ferguson are accused of extorting more than $1.7 million from contractor Lakeshore Engineering Services and a related firm A&H Contractors. The extortion stemmed from a sewer contract.
Executives paid the money because they feared their firms would suffer economically, according to the indictment.
Kilpatrick lawyer James C. Thomas unsuccessfully objected to the judge reading the jury’s question in open court, citing the media’s presence and coverage of the five-month trial.
Jurors in the Kwame Kilpatrick corruption case have asked a question and U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds is gathering lawyers involved in the case to her courtroom for the first time since closing arguments.
Jurors will be brought into the judge’s courtroom at approximately 10:30 a.m. Kilpatrick, his father Bernard and contractor Bobby Ferguson are not required to attend the impromptu hearing.
Check back for updates on the jury’s question and any other developments.
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