Hung Jury
Why is this news coming out on a Sunday? Did the jury meet Saturday?
- After deliberating two days, a jury couldn't reach a verdict in the trial of Howard Morgan, a railroad police officer accused of the attempted murder of four Chicago cops during a traffic stop in which Morgan suffered more than two dozen police-inflicted bullet wounds.
The jury, which began deliberations Wednesday, acquitted Morgan of two counts of aggravated battery with a firearm and one count of aggravated discharge of a firearm at a peace officer.
But the jury said it was deadlocked on four counts of attempted murder of a police officer and one count of aggravated battery with a firearm. The judge declared a mistrial.
Now that we're being re-familiarized with the case, we do recall that Morgan was fired a number of years ago due to testing positive for drugs. This was in all the papers immediately following the shooting. We also seem to recall a chase being involved and a fight with arresting officers before assist units arrived and the gun battle ensued. But to read the recent coverage, one would think that the coppers just pulled up on this goof, dragged him out of his car and shot him 25 times for no apparent reason.
Labels: crime
posted by SCC at 12:05 AM
36 Comments:
The reason Morgan was pulled over was that he was driving away from the area where there was a shots fired call.
I know the two 10th District officers involved and if he had stopped and reasoned with them he would have been on his way in a moment. Unless, he was involved in the earlier shots fired incident or something else. I don't know the TRU cops but I suppose the same would be true. Being fired from CPD might have given Morgan an attitude problem.
The States Attorney really needs to break the changing story of the "witness".
I hope they do a better job with a second chance.
This is just a sign of things to come. After every video and scandal that breaks in CPD, people hate us more.
It is a scary day when people's hate for us can trump the facts of an airtight case.
I used to mock the "dogs" who just did their 8, no more, no less. But these days I cannot condemn them.
Hell, at least at the end of the day they'll have their house, car and freedom and be ALIVE to go home to their children.
Do you 8, don't be a hero. Look out for yourselves kids, because no one else will.
they deliberated on saturday from 930 til 2pm before the mistrial was called on saturday. jury was hung 11 to 1, 11 guilty, 1 not guilty. the lone juror is a female one from dolton.
YOU NO WHAT IS REALLY SAD THE OFFICER WHO WERE HURT DID NOT SUE THIS FOOL. THEY COULD HAVE HAD A NICE PAY DAY SINCE HE WORKED FOR THE RAIL ROAD. JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF OFFICER NOT KNOWING THE LAW AND JUST PLAIN LAZY IN THEIR OWN DEFENSE. CANT BLAME THE FLOP 4 THIS 1.
one of are own got shot in 009! are prayers are with you!
I try not to take this job personnaly, but it is hard not to when a guy that shoots the police is not a slam dunk conviction. If these guys got killed they would be heroes, but since they lived to testify, in the eyes of the jury they are now lying?
What will it take for this country to turn around? Until it does, give the people what they want.
The jurors in the Howard Morgan case polled in open court, 11 to 1 to convict. Some juror's appologised to the officers, one juror wept at not being able to convince the hold out to convict. Morgans attorneys{he had 4, wonder who picked up the tab for that ? the same jag that posted $300.000 for his bail?) Were visibly upset by the poll and Jurors comments Warm up the prison cell .. Howard will be retried in Aug. Sgt E. Olsen Cpd Retired
IF (and I emphasize IF) this Morgan trial was a case of JURY NULLIFICATION, the death knell has been sounded for the CPD and the law-abiding citizens of this city.
Has it come to the point where you have police officers shot that the shooter's fate will now be in the hands of an "O.J. Simpson jury" with a transparent and biased anti-police agenda?
Even before this jury returned, the CPD has been on life support and in extremely critical condition.
Despite the inevitable certainty of Daley's selection of an inside puppet for the top job, he would be shrewdly compelled to name a highly regarded outsider with integrity and absolutely no connections to the cesspool of Chicago politics.
Hung jury? Just goes to show nobody gives a shit about us. In this case it's a little obvious.
Well it is not just hHolywood celebrities who get away with crime. The justice system in this county is going into the sewer. Just remember, THERE IS NO JUSTICE- JUST US.
Anonymous said...
they deliberated on saturday from 930 til 2pm before the mistrial was called on saturday. jury was hung 11 to 1, 11 guilty, 1 not guilty. the lone juror is a female one from dolton.
5/14/2007 12:59:00 AM
-----------------------------------
There's a fucking shocker.
Do your 8, no more. Don't get shot for this city/county that values your life at zero. They'll give you a quick burial then forget about you.
This is only a job, not your family.
JR LAW STUDENT said...
YOU NO WHAT IS REALLY SAD THE OFFICER WHO WERE HURT DID NOT SUE THIS FOOL. THEY COULD HAVE HAD A NICE PAY DAY SINCE HE WORKED FOR THE RAIL ROAD. JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF OFFICER NOT KNOWING THE LAW AND JUST PLAIN LAZY IN THEIR OWN DEFENSE. CANT BLAME THE FLOP 4 THIS 1.
5/14/2007 01:16:00 AM
Look asshole the railroad is not on the hook for shit done off duty. You stupid motherfucker you don't even know the law. Plus,that fuck is broke, trust me i looked into it.
REMEMBER FELLOW OFFICERS NOT EVERYBODY HATES US, JUST THE MUTTS OF COOK COUNTY. THEY SHOULD CHANGE THE COURT VENUE AND DO THE TRIAL IN DUPAGE COUNTY, AT LEAST BIRKETT WOULD GET A CONVICTION AND LIKE IN PRISON. REMEMBER VOTE REPUPLICAN AND UNTILL THERE IS JUSTICE NEVER ALLOW PEACE.
Shameful, absolutely shameful. There is no other way to break this down other than an obviously race-motivated juror who refused to find 'guilty' due to the commonality of their race. It makes me sick to my stomach in such a clear-cut based-on-the-facts-case with all of the evidence adding up, that one could be so ignorant to the facts and find 'not guilty', causing a hung jury.
The ASAs did a great job, one and all. The officers did no wrong--from the initial stop to their testimony. The supporting testimony only added to the flames and should have secured a 'guilty' verdict in an hour including a lunch break--however, one woman, for reasons that seem abundantly clear, refused to find in support of countless articles of evidence. Because of that reason, you will only see this story (if at all) burried in the back of the paper after Michael Sneed. Ironicly, just like you won't see the police march in support of their own fallen unless you look for them off the beaten path and tru an hour and 1/2 of traffic. Burried so no one can see them.
There is an old saying: if twelve jurors aren't smart enough to get out of jury duty, are they smart enough to accurately find a man guilty?
Sorry guys--sorry you were hurt in the initial stop, sorry you have to go thru it all again, but most of all, sorry that asshole isn't in jail for the rest of his life.
I hope the next panel of 12 can do the right thing.
Crappy ammo? or just bad hits?
Keep this in mind brothers, if at all possible don't leave it in the hands of the State's Attorney's Office or a jury. Find a way to finish him off. Let us judge and sentence any animal who dares to shoot at the police.
To: "Anonymous said...
Crappy ammo? or just bad hits?
5/14/2007 12:58:00 PM"
The answer is definitely BOTH!
The SUB-SONIC 9mm ammo we were required to use then did not have the kinetic energy to mushroom and provide stopping power. Of the 25 holes in Morgan, almost half of them are exit wounds because the bullets did not mushroom and spent their energy after going through. The only reason to carry SUB-SONIC ammo is if you are using a sound suppressed weapon.
We now can carry +P 9mm ammo, this is a welcome and overdue change. We always could use +P .45 Cal. which is always a better choice in a close quarters gunfight.
Bad hits, if you know our firearms training, and qualification requirements this goes without saying. Will this change, will we get the FATS system back, I doubt it.
Add to this, the officers and supervisors on the scene did a very professional job. The responding paramedics and Mt. Sinai Hospital did their usual good job of keeping the wounded, worthy or unworthy alive.
Look asshole the railroad is not on the hook for shit done off duty. You stupid motherfucker you don't even know the law. Plus,that fuck is broke, trust me i looked into it.
DAMN U R HOT. SO IF A P.O. DOES SOMETHING OFF DUTY AND USE HIS WEAPON THEN THE CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT NOT RESPONSIBLE.
I BELIEVE U LOOKED INTO IT BY ASKING A SGT OR A UNIT REP. NEXT TIME CALL A LAWYER. YOU SHOULD BE MAKING ABOUT 50K U CAN AFFORD IT.
i'd be willing to bet that the same guy that posted asshole's bail and probably helping with his defense, probably has that holdout juror in his pocket.
You guys think you got it bad. Man, do I have one to tell you about...
I would love to hook up with a hung jury.
Crappy ammo? or just bad hits?
Bad ammo
Typical...
Can anyone tell me when we are going to learn?
SOS, Abate, Jefferson Tap, and now I hear 2 more of L.S. guys are in the hotseat!
Have fun kids! 8 more and I'm out!
Keep earning my pension, hair gel!
Thats a good question 12:58 asks. How do you shoot a guy 25 times and not kill him? Was it a case of bad ammo or bad hits? Does anybody know if any of the hits were to vital areas or were they just to the extremities?
The police officers in this case did everything right. Race was certainly the issue. Where is the liberal media now? This is injustice in the highest order. The police officers in this case shall not be forgotten. For weeks we get the Abbate tape everynight. Where is the outrage when a jury cannot reach a correct verdict on a slam dunk case?? The media in this town needs to get their head out of their ass. A detective is shot on the South side, and the lead story on the news is the weather. My God, we are living in strange times. Ladies and Gents, do the best you can, watch out for each other, and do right by your family. Stay safe.
YOU NO WHAT IS REALLY SAD THE OFFICER WHO WERE HURT DID NOT SUE THIS FOOL. THEY COULD HAVE HAD A NICE PAY DAY SINCE HE WORKED FOR THE RAIL ROAD. JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF OFFICER NOT KNOWING THE LAW AND JUST PLAIN LAZY IN THEIR OWN DEFENSE. CANT BLAME THE FLOP 4 THIS 1.
5/14/2007 01:16:00 AM
Good luck with the lawsuit who you going to call to take the case one of the scumbag lawyers you guys are always bad mouthing. Joke try and sue
DAMN U R HOT. SO IF A P.O. DOES SOMETHING OFF DUTY AND USE HIS WEAPON THEN THE CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT NOT RESPONSIBLE.
I BELIEVE U LOOKED INTO IT BY ASKING A SGT OR A UNIT REP. NEXT TIME CALL A LAWYER. YOU SHOULD BE MAKING ABOUT 50K U CAN AFFORD IT.
YOU ARE 100% WRONG
all you jag-off's deserve what you get. All you do is complain an then you talk shit about each other. Hopefully (and I am sure most of the dog cops agree with me) Abbatte, the Jeff Tapp and all other lazy ass cops get what they deserve. This city hates you as much as you hate us...
The media from the begining were falling all over this offender like he was the poster child for police brutality. It started with that bleeding heart liberal greek bitch on channel 5.
How could anyone believe the defenses story. All those officers would of had to conspire.
We cant even agree on where to eat on any given day.
To: "This is only a job, not your family.
5/14/2007 11:31:00 AM "
For over thirty years, the people I have worked with have been my family. I have done a lot of good during that time and some of the partners I have had are my closest friends even long after they have left the job, they are still part of my family.
I have been lucky and have never been sued except over a BS traffic accident.
At least (1) P.O. was shot by Morgan, right? If I remember correctly ????
Is the offender saying he did not shoot the officer?
WTF is the gist of the argument? I did not shoot the officer?
I shot the officer but I did not know he was an officer?
I shot the officer but it was in self-defense?
I accidentally shot the officer?
Another officer shot the officer, not me?
What defense is being offered here?
Any help???
This is just another sign of the "end-Times" for CPD! Let's face a blunt fact if the mayor on down shows no respect for us how will anyone else? thanks to the most corrupt admisistration anywhere daley and his thugs have destroyed a great police dept! Why do you really think Cline left? Simple daley wanted to hang the abbate and everything else on him! The city in most neighborhoods from the liberals,yuppies,south and west sides don't support us at all, but some areas still do it is just a matter of time before the whole city is gone to hell! LET'S HOPE PATRICK FITZGERALD AND HIS TEAM HAS EDDIE V. SHIT ALL OVER HIMSELF ALONG WITH OTHERS AND FINALLY PUT DALEY ALL ALL HIS THUGANOMICS STUDENTS IN PRISON!
To 1:16 AM, How come the CPD is getting sued in the Abbate debacle?
Anonymous said...
To 1:16 AM, How come the CPD is getting sued in the Abbate debacle?
5/15/2007 04:34:00 PM
My take on this, and I am no expert, is that ABBATE should have never been hired. If I recall right, and I am not in the know, just what I can recall, he had a previous DUI, and he also had a suspended DL.
Dave Savani found out and brought it to the attention of his Attorney, and then to the rest of the citizens of Chicago on the news.
So, I think the City was brought in b/c this guy was a bad from the get go and the CPD covered it up and hired him. So they are now responsible for his actions b/c he should have NEVER been the police.
Any lawers want to correct me/chime in/comment? Again, I'm not in the know, I'm not a law pro, it is just my take.
Abbate was not acting as the police when he beat that woman. He still could have went into the bar and kicked he ass as an overserved civiian if the police had not hired him. The portion of the law suit against CPD has very little merit.
I was once in a film with an all male cast caled "Hung Jury". I am not very proud of it but I was young and needed the money.
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