*A judge has declared a mistrial in the Dayonte Resiles murder trial, and the move comes after the jury rescinded its manslaughter verdict when a juror later objected.
“I don’t know what to expect honestly, I feel like the journey has just been nervewracking like being here every day and then being told okay you gotta come back tomorrow, you gotta come back tomorrow, and I’m just happy,” Dayonte Resiles’ sister, Amelida said after the announcement, WSVN reports.
According to reports, the jury foreperson said three jurors were unwilling to convict Resiles based on his race.
“[The three jurors] said, ‘I don’t want to send a young Black male to jail for the rest of their life or have him get the death sentence,’” said the foreperson.
Resiles faces life in prison (or death penalty) for the murder of Jill Su, a 59-year-old woman that he allegedly tied up inside her home and fatally stabbed in September of 2014. His DNA was found on a knife and inside the home, according to reports.
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“When the jury is polled to have one juror to say no your honor that’s not my verdict that’s quite rare,” said Craig Trocino, Miami Law Innocence Clinic Director, at the University of Miami School of Law.
“The polling of the jurors happens as a matter of course and it’s for this reason right because you don’t want dominant personalities in a jury room convincing someone to enter into a jury vote, against their will or against their conscience,” he explained
“The whole time I’m staring at the judge and at the clerk, and we’re locking eyes, and I’m looking at each one of them,” said the juror. “They’re just waiting for my verdict of either ‘yes, I agree’ or ‘no,’ and I just couldn’t, and that’s why I said no.”
Most of the jury was ready to convict Resiles of second-degree murder, but three reportedly refused because of his race.
“You guys keep saying ‘a young Black man,’ but I don’t see race. I just see a human being, and you know, one particular person said to me, ‘Hey, if you were outside this courtroom, you would have gotten smacked out in the street for this,’” said the juror.
Resiles’ next trial is set to start on Jan. 3 with a new jury.
