The jury is still deliberating the verdict in Athens County Sheriff's Pat Kelly's trial.
The jury is still deliberating the verdict in the public corruption trial of suspended Athens County Sheriff Pat Kelly.
The jurors began deliberating Wednesday morning, after visiting Judge Patricia A. Cosgrove instructed them Tuesday afternoon on how to properly reach a verdict for each of the 25 counts handed to Kelly in January 2014 by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine.
Jurors were brought to the Athens County Common Pleas Court at 9 a.m., where Kelly and his wife, Debra, waited until 5 p.m. to hear the plea.
Tuesday, the jurors heard Assistant Attorney General Melissa A. Schiffel’s closing argument. She urged them to apply “reason and common sense” when deciding the verdict.
Schiffel said the claims the defense has made regarding bias on behalf of the state are ludicrous, as Kelly “has the most to lose.”
Kelly’s attorney, Scott Wood, told the jury in his closing argument to consider the prosecution was only able to show a lack of documentation when it came to missing funds, which he said isn’t enough to prove criminal intent.
Jurors will continue deliberations Thursday at 9 a.m.
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