Manafort Jury's First Questions Included Defining 'Reasonable Doubt'
Responding to that request, the judge said the prosecution bore the burden of proving its allegations beyond a reasonable doubt, but not beyond “all possible doubt.”
August 16, 2018 at 06:20 PM
3 minute read
U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III of the Eastern District of Virginia. Credit: Diego M. Radzinschi/ National Law Journal
After a full day of deliberations, jurors handling Paul Manafort's tax and bank fraud trial emerged at about 5 p.m. Thursday with a knock on a side door to the courtroom and a note with questions for U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III of the Eastern District of Virginia.
Their inquiries included a technical question related to the allegations that Manafort, the former Trump campaign chairman, failed to disclose foreign bank accounts. The jury asked whether one is required to file a disclosure, known as a FBAR, if they lack signatory authority over an account and own less than half its assets, but do have the authority to direct disbursements.
In response, Ellis re-read the instruction he gave the jurors before they entered deliberations.
The jury also asked Ellis for clarification on the meaning of “reasonable doubt.” Responding to that request, Ellis said the prosecution bore the burden of proving its allegations beyond a reasonable doubt but not beyond “all possible doubt.”
Reasonable doubt, Ellis said, “is doubt based on reason.”
Their last question asked the judge for an amended list of exhibits, changed to include the indictment counts to the related exhibits—a sign that jurors could be struggling through the extensive paper trail of evidence prosecutors laid out. The judge declined that request.
In their note to Ellis, the jurors also said they planned to conclude deliberations for the day at 5:30 p.m. The jurors are set to reconvene at 9:30 a.m. Friday. Their questions, which were read aloud in open court, gave no indication of how close they are to reaching a verdict.
Before cutting out of court, the judge urged jurors to go home and “put the matter” of the trial out of their minds. Repeating directions he's given the jury before, Ellis told them it “continues to be very important” that they not conduct any inquires on their own.
But forgetting about the trial might be easier for Ellis than for jurors, the judge admitted. He has a “boring dinner” tonight.
Read more:
Mueller's Team Used the Few Tools Available to Confront Tough Judges
Manafort Trial Judge Has Had It With Attorneys' Eye Rolling, Facial Gestures
Trump-Appointed Judge Uphold Mueller's Special Counsel Authority
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