NEED TO KNOW
- Jurors say they're unable to reach verdict on fifth count; Judge has asked jury to continue deliberations
- Dunn is charged with first-degree murder for shooting 17-year-old Jordan Davis during a 2012 dispute over loud music
The jury in the Michael Dunn trial has reached a verdict on four of the five counts, Judge Russell Healey announced Saturday.
Healey said the jurors are unable to reach an unanimous verdict on Count 1, which is the first-degree murder charge -- or any of the lesser offenses related to it. Healey has instructed the jurors to continue deliberating to try to reach an unanimous decision.
The jury did not reveal the verdicts reached on the four other counts.
Earlier on Saturday, jurors had three questions for Healey. The jury asked Healey the following questions:
1) Is the defense of self-defense separate for each person in each count?
2) Are we determining if deadly force is justified against each person in each count?
3) If we determine deadly force is justified against one person, is it justified against the others?
Watch: What do the Dunn jury questions reveal?
Healey replied yes to the first two questions, but no to the third, saying "self-defense and justifiable use of deadly force use applies separately for each count." After hearing the judge's response, jurors returned to the jury room to resume deliberations.
Read more: Dunn jury: What if we're stuck?
The jury, made up of seven women and five men, is in its fourth day of deliberations in the case against Dunn, who is charged with first-degree murder for fatally shooting 17-year-old Jordan Davis during a dispute over loud music in Florida in 2012.
Read more: See the evidence in the Michael Dunn case
Dunn, 47, claims he acted in self-defense. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him, which also include three counts of attempted murder related to three teens who were in the vehicle with Davis that night but survived the shooting. Dunn also faces an additional count of shooting or firing a deadly missile. Jurors can also consider a second-degree murder charge or manslaughter.
On Friday, jurors passed a note to the judge asking: "Is it possible to not reach a verdict one one count and reach a verdict on the other counts?" Judge Healey told them it was possible. He explained to Dunn, outside the jury's presence, that if they were hung on one of the counts that, "The state is then free to retry whatever count that is, in their discretion."
Sunday would have been Davis' birthday, a fact not lost on his mother, Lucia McBath.
The case has drawn national parallels with the Trayvon Martin case. Martin and Davis were unarmed, young black males shot dead during a dispute. Martin, 17, was shot dead on February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida. George Zimmerman was acquitted in Martin's death.
Benjamin Crump, the attorney for Martin's parents, released a statement Saturday to Jordan Davis' family: "Nelson Mandela once said, "may your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears." The killing of 17-year-old Jordan Davis is yet another reminder that in Florida, racial profiling and stereotypes may serve as the basis for supposititious fear and the shooting and killing of young teenagers. No matter the verdict, the fact that Ron and Lucia will never see their son again will not change; we know that pain all too well. We walk with Jordan in defining his legacy to reflect our hopes by advancing love and tolerance in his memory, and continuing the fight against unjust gun laws."
Healey said the jurors are unable to reach an unanimous verdict on Count 1, which is the first-degree murder charge -- or any of the lesser offenses related to it. Healey has instructed the jurors to continue deliberating to try to reach an unanimous decision.
The jury did not reveal the verdicts reached on the four other counts.
Earlier on Saturday, jurors had three questions for Healey. The jury asked Healey the following questions:
1) Is the defense of self-defense separate for each person in each count?
2) Are we determining if deadly force is justified against each person in each count?
3) If we determine deadly force is justified against one person, is it justified against the others?
Watch: What do the Dunn jury questions reveal?
Healey replied yes to the first two questions, but no to the third, saying "self-defense and justifiable use of deadly force use applies separately for each count." After hearing the judge's response, jurors returned to the jury room to resume deliberations.
Read more: Dunn jury: What if we're stuck?
The jury, made up of seven women and five men, is in its fourth day of deliberations in the case against Dunn, who is charged with first-degree murder for fatally shooting 17-year-old Jordan Davis during a dispute over loud music in Florida in 2012.
Read more: See the evidence in the Michael Dunn case
Dunn, 47, claims he acted in self-defense. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him, which also include three counts of attempted murder related to three teens who were in the vehicle with Davis that night but survived the shooting. Dunn also faces an additional count of shooting or firing a deadly missile. Jurors can also consider a second-degree murder charge or manslaughter.
On Friday, jurors passed a note to the judge asking: "Is it possible to not reach a verdict one one count and reach a verdict on the other counts?" Judge Healey told them it was possible. He explained to Dunn, outside the jury's presence, that if they were hung on one of the counts that, "The state is then free to retry whatever count that is, in their discretion."
Sunday would have been Davis' birthday, a fact not lost on his mother, Lucia McBath.
The case has drawn national parallels with the Trayvon Martin case. Martin and Davis were unarmed, young black males shot dead during a dispute. Martin, 17, was shot dead on February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida. George Zimmerman was acquitted in Martin's death.
Benjamin Crump, the attorney for Martin's parents, released a statement Saturday to Jordan Davis' family: "Nelson Mandela once said, "may your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears." The killing of 17-year-old Jordan Davis is yet another reminder that in Florida, racial profiling and stereotypes may serve as the basis for supposititious fear and the shooting and killing of young teenagers. No matter the verdict, the fact that Ron and Lucia will never see their son again will not change; we know that pain all too well. We walk with Jordan in defining his legacy to reflect our hopes by advancing love and tolerance in his memory, and continuing the fight against unjust gun laws."
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