The Verdict: The Jurors And The Blacks

The first half of tonight's episode of The Verdict was devoted to the continuing wait. There were three segments devoted to the Conrad Black trial: the first featured jury expert Paul Lisnek; the second had Enron juror Dana Fernandez; and, the third, which was devoted to how the Black are holding up, had on Joan Crockett and Peter C. Newman.

In the opening segment, Csr. Lisnek speculated that the jurors have tried a start-from-scratch technique. He squared this guess with Ms. Todd pointing out the jurors' earlier request for advice by comparing them to people in school working out a difficult problem, whose teacher told them to have another crack at it. No-one knows how far they have to go. There doesn’t seem to be any real conflict in the deliberations room, just disagreement based upon key pieces of evidence. He agreed with Ms. Todd that the deadlock is most probably due to some jurors refusing to convict. It's highly unlikely that it’s eleven versus one, despite the glamour of that scenario indicating otherwise. When asked by Ms. Todd if there was lack of unanimity for each charge, he said it was “possible” but it could also be one count only, an alternative he seemed to believe was the most accurate one.

After Csr. Lisnek was finished, Ms. Todd mentioned the Enron case, which took six days of deliberation. Then, her next guest, Dana Fernandez, came on. Ms. Fernandez said that the Enron jury went through every piece of evidence for each count and trod carefully, so as to do the right thing. They were methodical, count through count. A few jurors had difficulty with two of the counts; they had to have things spelled out for them. There were some jurors with relevant depthful knowledge. She was one of them, as she works in a courtroom.

Kenneth Lay’s family smiled at the jury when they came in. But, Ms. Fernandez put it aside, as she saw the jury duty as a job that had to be done. She said that Americans do take their jury duties seriously. The Enron jurors felt no time pressure, and did the right thing because the decision would always be with them. She ended by saying that she and the other jurors still socialize together.

The third segment featured Mr. Newman and Ms. Crockett, with the general topic of how stressed both Conrad and his wife are. Mr. Newman noted that Conrad never talked in the courtroom, and that he commands the attention of the room without talking. He described Conrad Black as “exasperated,” and opined that Conrad believes that he’s “above it all.”

Ms. Crockett, on the other hand, pegged him as “resilient.” The source of his charisma, she ventured, could be visible signs of him thinking without talking. He only shows irritation occasionally; normally, according to eyewitness accounts, he's been quite patient. Barbara, though, is different. She’s more “fragile.”

Mr. Newman then described Barbara as intelligent and attractive, but with her feet not on the ground. This character trait shows in her spending behaviour. He pointed to them staying in the Ritz-Carlton, as opposed to the more modest Radisson which Conrad alone may have preferred, as evidence of that trait. Ms. Crockett disagreed with his interpretation by saying that both have a role to play.

There was further disagreement between the two about the convictability of the obstruction of justice charge. Mr. Newman pointed to the tape and the timing, while Ms. Crockett pointed out that Conrad had had no notification from the SEC at that time.

Barbara will find it harder to accept a guilty verdict, according to Mr. Newman, because she's now used to an extravagant lifestyle. Ms. Crockett replied, disagreeing with Mr. Newman regarding Barbara's habituation to wealth, that she can go back to her poverty-laced roots. When asked by Ms. Todd about how Black would adjust to prison if convicted, Ms. Crockett replied that he’s cerebral. Most likely, he'd cope through reading and writing, and would continue the fight from jail. Mr. Newman pointed out that he may not be permitted to do so in jail. Ms. Todd finished this segment by asking them both if the couple will stay together should Conrad be convicted. Mr. Newman said that Barbara probably wouldn't stay, and Ms. Crockett replied that the two are very close, so she doesn’t know.

Ms. Todd's closing editorial dealt with the wait for the end of deliberations. She said there were “troubling” signs that the jurors are having trouble with the evidence itself - that confusion, not disagreement, may be what’s causing the deadlock. The transcript asked for, a journalist (unnamed by Ms. Todd) had noted, corresponded to a time in the trial when one juror was sound asleep.