JONESBORO, Ga. -- The jury in the Victor Hill corruption trial continues deliberating the Clayton County Sheriff's fate today.
Shortly after 3 p.m., Wednesday, the jury in the racketeering trial of Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill began to deliberate his fate.
After about two hours, they went home for the night.
Hill was portrayed as either a thief or a political victim in his racketeering trial closing arguments Wednesday.
RELATED | Prosecution rests in Hill trial
"This is a not guilty verdict in 32 seconds," defense attorney Drew Findling tried to convince the jury.
Findling claimed Hill had the right to use county vehicles, credit cards and take pleasure trips with former female employees, including to gambling casinos, because he was sheriff 24/7, 365 days a year and was always on call.
COMPLETE COVERAGE | The Victor Hill trial
TIMELINE | The Victor Hill corruption case
He accused former Sheriff Kem Kimbrough, who defeated Hill in 2008, of using "Gestapo" tactics to make sure Hill couldn't beat him again last year, which he ended up doing.
Findling claimed Kimbrough used 11 investigators and spent $400,000 to go after Hill over a matter of only $1,000 in questionable expenses.
He said Kimbrough should have called in an unbiased, outside police agency, like the GBI, to investigate instead.
"Did they do that? Oh, no, baby, 'cause they were using the criminal justice system to work Sheriff Hill," Findling told the jury.
"Here's what they found using $400,000 of your money," Findling said, "You ready? Get set. Goose egg, nothing."
Even though Sheriff Kimbrough is also African-American, Findling tried to convince the jury that Hill is being persecuted, in part, because of his race.
"There's been a sea of whiteness casting allegations against him," he added.
In her closing argument, special prosecutor Layla Zon compared the political persecution allegation to a wife checking her husband's phone text messages to see if he's cheating.
"You may not like it," she said, "but the fact is he was cheating."
"What's done, is done," Zon added, pointing out that the defense didn't dispute Hill's use of company resources for personal pleasure trips.
"He gets to do this because he's sheriff, while you're back here working to pay taxes?" she asked jurors.
"That's offensive to take your tax money and spend it on himself," she added.
She urged the jury to base their verdict on facts and not on emotions appealing to sympathy, race or creed.
"Would any of you use your business car and take off on a trip to Miami?" she asked.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Victor Hill jury deliberating Sheriff's fate
Dengan url
http://anakandung.blogspot.com/2013/08/victor-hill-jury-deliberating-sheriffs.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Victor Hill jury deliberating Sheriff's fate
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Victor Hill jury deliberating Sheriff's fate
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar