Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> Capital Defense Weekly

Criminal Law

: Capital Defense Weekly

first look at this week’s edition

By Karl R. Keys, Esq.

The first draft of  case law from this week’s edition is posted below: Defense People v. Brian Nelson,  2009 Ill. LEXIS 2308 (Ill 12/17/2009) Trial court erred in removing deliberating penalty phase juror simply because the juror wouldn’t go along with the majority who sought death. “sed upon the record, we conclude that had the jury been allowed to continue to deliberate with Juror 20 as a member of the jury, a nonunanimous verdict would likely have been rendered. According to the jury foreperson’s notes and interview, the jury was at loggerheads because of Juror 20’s position opposing a sentence of death for defendant. Several of the jurors refused to sign the nonunanimous verdict. Had the trial court not dismissed Juror 20, it would have sent the jury back for further deliberations, with or without a Prim instruction...continue to full post

Full post as published by Capital Defense Weekly on December 21, 2009 (boomark / email).