Deliberations Over; Verdict is Out
With so much evidence and testimony presented over the eight-day trial, the jury took two days and a total of six hours of deliberations to reach a verdict. The federal jury in the Sypher extortion trial unanimously decided on a guilty verdict.
The biggest message portrayed from the jurors was that the panel took its time and based its decision on what was presented in court. "None of said she's guilty of everything right off the bat," said Brian Ross, one of the jurors. "We just did it each charge by each charge."
All jurors believed Sypher to be guilty on counts of extortion. Glen Elder, the jury foreman, said, "I do believe the verdict we came up with, the guilty verdict, on all six counts was justified."
Elder says the guilty verdict stems from what the 12 members of the jury that took part in the deliberations heard in court. "We all discussed the case. We discussed all of the testimony that we heard and took time to make sire that everyone on the jury was heard," Elder says.
In the end, the jury decision came down to the fact "we had to do what was right by the law." Sypher remains free on her on recognizance. She will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Simpson III on October 27 at 10 a.m.
Posted by Shane Alan Andersen
