By MARJORIE NEEDHAM
The jury in the Paul Perrotti trial deliberated from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday without reaching a verdict, and they won’t resume deliberations until Wednesday morning. That is because the jury informed the judge today that juror 4, a woman, had a prior commitment that would prevent her from being in court Tuesday.
Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer informed the attorneys and others at 1:30 p.m. that the jury had sent him a note telling him a juror could not be in court Tuesday. With the jury in the courtroom, Meyer told the jury they have no particular time limit on making their decision. He told them if they would like to stay late Monday, the court would provide an evening meal for them. He then asked 11 of the jurors to step out of the room so he could discuss the situation with juror 4.
Juror 4 apologized for the situation but explained that six months ago she promised to care for her grandchild while his parents went away on vacation. She had managed to find others to care for the child Monday, but had been unable to find anyone to do so Tuesday. After she left the courtroom, the judge asked the lawyers for their thoughts on the situation.
Defense attorney David Gronbach cited a case with similar circumstances in which the jury was given a day off and deliberations resumed when the missing juror could join them. Prosecutor Sarah Karwan cited a case that supported excusing the juror and proceeding with 11 jurors because the longer the jury deliberates, the higher the risk is of losing more jurors.
Judge Meyer then received a note from the jury saying they wished to end their day at 4 p.m., so he said he would announce his decision at that time. At 4 p.m., he asked the jurors if everyone was free to serve on all the remaining days of the week, Wednesday through Friday. They said they were. He said he would give the jury a day off Tuesday, and they could resume deliberations Wednesday. They told him they would like to begin deliberations at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday.
