📄 Jury returns — Wednesday, April 12, 1995
Address:
C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\APR\12\JURY-RETURNS.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 55 of 167

Jury returns

Date: Wednesday, April 12, 1995 • Utterances: 7
Judge Ito brought the jury back into the courtroom only to immediately dismiss them for the day, apologizing that an unexpected legal matter had arisen that would prevent completion of Dennis Fung's testimony. The jury was told to return the following morning at 9 a.m.
1 (THE FOLLOWING PROCEEDINGS WERE HELD IN OPEN COURT:)
2 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. MR. FUNG, WHY DON'T YOU JUST HAVE A SEAT.

3 (BRIEF PAUSE.)
4 (THE FOLLOWING PROCEEDINGS WERE HELD IN OPEN COURT, IN THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY:)
5 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. PLEASE BE SEATED. ALL RIGHT. THE RECORD SHOULD REFLECT THAT WE HAVE NOW BEEN REJOINED BY ALL THE MEMBERS OF OUR JURY PANEL. GOOD AFTERNOON, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.

6 THE JURY:

GOOD AFTERNOON.

7 THE COURT:

BEFORE YOU GET TOO COMFORTABLE, I HAVE TO APOLOGIZE TO YOU THAT SOMETHING UNUSUAL CAME UP THAT I HAVE TO DEAL WITH THAT IS GOING TO TAKE ME QUITE SOME TIME THIS AFTERNOON, AND WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FINISH WITH MR. FUNG THIS AFTERNOON. AND I NEED TO TAKE CARE OF SOME THINGS BEFORE WE CAN PROCEED AGAIN.

WE WILL START AGAIN, I PROMISE YOU, TOMORROW MORNING AT NINE O'CLOCK. I THINK EXPLAINED TO YOU EARLIER DURING THE COURSE OF THE TRIAL THAT THERE IS SOMETHING CALLED MURPHY'S LAW AND FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO RECALL, MURPHY'S LAW IS IF SOMETHING CAN GO WRONG, SOMETHING WILL GO WRONG, AND THE FIRST COROLLARY TO MURPHY'S LAW IS THAT IF IT IS GOING TO GO WRONG IT WILL GO WRONG AT THE MOST INOPPORTUNE MOMENT, BECAUSE WE SEEMED TO HAVE HIT OUR STRIDE AND THEN WE WERE MAKING SOME PROGRESS TODAY AND I WAS HOPING TO FINISH MR. FUNG THIS AFTERNOON. PLEASE REMEMBER ALL MY ADMONITIONS TO YOU. DON'T DISCUSS THE CASE AMONG YOURSELVES, DON'T FORM ANY OPINIONS ABOUT THE CASE, DO NOT ALLOW ANYBODY TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOU, DO NOT CONDUCT ANY DELIBERATIONS UNTIL THE MATTER HAS BEEN SUBMITTED TO YOU. AND I KNOW YOU HAVE SOME ACTIVITY FOR THE EVENING, SO I'M SURE YOU ARE NOT TOO UNHAPPY TO GET STARTED EARLIER TODAY. ALL RIGHT. WE WILL STAND IN RECESS, AS FAR AS THE JURY IS CONCERNED, UNTIL NINE O'CLOCK TOMORROW MORNING, AND WE WILL, AS SOON AS THE JURY HAS BEEN EXCUSED, TAKE UP SOME OF THE OTHER LEGAL ISSUES WE NEED TO DISCUSS AND THEN WE WILL START OUR FOUR O'CLOCK SESSION AT FOUR O'CLOCK. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.

Temperature

routine

Key Quotes (2)

Lance A. Ito
SOMETHING UNUSUAL CAME UP THAT I HAVE TO DEAL WITH THAT IS GOING TO TAKE ME QUITE SOME TIME THIS AFTERNOON, AND WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FINISH WITH MR. FUNG THIS AFTERNOON.
Explains the abrupt early dismissal without revealing the nature of the legal issue to the jury.
Lance A. Ito
MURPHY'S LAW IS IF SOMETHING CAN GO WRONG, SOMETHING WILL GO WRONG, AND THE FIRST COROLLARY TO MURPHY'S LAW IS THAT IF IT IS GOING TO GO WRONG IT WILL GO WRONG AT THE MOST INOPPORTUNE MOMENT, BECAUSE WE SEEMED TO HAVE HIT OUR STRIDE AND THEN WE WERE MAKING SOME PROGRESS TODAY.
Ito's folksy aside acknowledging the frustrating timing of the disruption mid-Fung examination.

Light Moments (1)

Lance A. Ito
Ito invokes Murphy's Law to explain the day's disruption, then notes the jury probably doesn't mind leaving early since they 'have some activity for the evening.'

Objections

None recorded
Proceeding 5653 • 7 utterances
Criminal Trial
Department 103
⚖️ Start
📂 APR 12, 1995 📄 Jury returns
APR 12, 1995 KRT DvH TD