The Verdict: Taking So Long

Tonight's episode of The Verdict had a segment dealing with the length of the deliberations. The guest was regular trial-watcher Hugh Totten.

Csr. Totten started off by comparing the wait to an old movie with expectant fathers in a waiting room. He also acknowledged, as did Ms. Todd, that the jury is being methodical; they're working through the evidence. Ms. Todd added that there has been no sign of a hung jury or “deadlock,” as Csr. Totten put it. There's been an understandable delay given the numerousness and seriousness of the charges. Csr. Totten added that the verdict form is about 30 pages, so the length of deliberations is understandable on this ground, even though he thought they’d be done by Friday as did Eddie Greenspan.

Csr. Totten speculated that the jury may find some of the non-compete agreements and associated payments “problematic,” especially the CanWest ones. The same ambiguity applies to the perks. He believes that the non-competes that contained self-dealing and the obstruction-of-justice charges were proven beyond a reasonable doubt, in his eyes. He used the slogan “not compete with himself” to describe the overlapping ownership interests that entered into those non-compete agreements.