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An Ohio state jury failed to determine the guilt or innocence of a former Columbus police officer accused of killing a woman while working undercover , so the judge declared the trial a mistrial.
The decision was made after the members of the jury did not reach a unanimous decision after 10 hours of deliberation in three days, in the case of Andrew Mitchell, who is charged with murder and voluntary manslaughter in the death of Donna Castleberry, of 23 years old, according to what he said was a prostitution bust, reported WTTW-TV.
Ten witnesses testified at the trial, including ex-officer Mitchell himself.
The jury began deliberations last Wednesday and informed Franklin County Court Judge David Young that the panel was deadlocked.
Seven members of the jury found the use of force by the former official reasonable, while two others found it unreasonable and three were undecided in their decision, NBC4 said.
Breaking:
Jury in the Andrew Mitchell murder trial says they are deadlocked. Judge David Young dismissed jury and declared a mistrial. pic.twitter.com/fOwdOWXbg6
— Lu Ann Stoia (@stoiawsyx6) April 04, 2022
It is not yet known whether prosecutors will retry Mitchell, who faces life in prison if convicted of the act.
“The State of Ohio will carefully review all available options to finalize to this matter and will make a public announcement in seven days,” Franklin County District Attorney Gary Tyack said in a statement.
Mitchell is in federal custody for another case in which he allegedly forced women to have sex with him in exchange for avoiding arrest. That case was not shared with the jury.
Following the Castleberry murder, the Columbus Division of Police abolished his unit vice.
After the trial was declared a mistrial, the department issued a statement informing that various changes were made, including a mandate that officials never work alone, that stops by request are always made by a uniformed officer in a marked patrol.
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