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For immediate release September 19, 2007<br><br>
Contact: Karen Pickett 510-548-3113<br><br>
Attorney Jerry Singleton 619-405-3056<br><br>
Hung Jury in Favor of Acquittal in Rod Coronado Free Speech Case<br><br>
San Diego, Calif.-After more than two full days of deliberation, a
12-person jury informed Judge Jeffrey Miller they were hopelessly
deadlocked and determined that further deliberation would not deliver
unanimity. Outside the courtroom, attorneys were informed that the
majority was voting for acquittal of the environmental and animal rights
activist on trial for a speech he gave in San Diego in 2003. In order to
convict under the obscure statute, (18 USC § 842 (p)(2)(A)), which makes
it a crime to demonstrate how to build a destructive device with the
intent that it be used in furtherance of a crime of violence), the jury
would have had to determine on three criteria: that his speech was
instructive, that he had intent to incite those present to violent
action, and that the incitement was to imminent action. Otherwise,
such speech is protected under the First Amendment. A status
conference was scheduled for September 28 in the same court to determine
whether the case will <br>
continue. Rod Coronado is headed home to Tucson, Arizona with his wife to
reunite with his children and return to his job.<br><br>
Omar Figueroa, an attorney on the legal team said, “We had a good jury
and they upheld the Constitution. It’s a great day for Constitutional
Rights.”<br><br>
Attorney Tony Serra, also part of the legal team said, “If these
prosecutors opt to re-try this case, then they are the puppets we know
they are, in the business of suppressing Constitutional rights. We hung
the jury probably 10-2 or 9-3 (that specific information was not
available from the jurors), so we know they can never win. So they would
be fools to retry, but this is political and their agenda is political.
If they re-try, we will win again.”<br><br>
Attorney Jerry Singleton reminded those present that Coronado has not
been an advocate of direct action since 2006, and in fact renounced the
type of direct action he formerly participated in, and is opting instead
to work on building sustainable communities with his family.<br><br>
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