Jury Deliberations

Sorry for the lack of an update today. So far nothing has happened. The jury deliberated for a few hours and then took a two hour lunch break.

Sentencing Day Three

Judge Hall is charging the jury. It's expected that the jury will go home for the day and start deliberations in the morning.

Broussard just showed the jury the pants Golden was wearing the day of the shooting. He showed them the stains from him lying on the parking lot, where he was begging for his life.

Broussard: If Albarran could have gotten officer Golden's gun to work, after he had shot him, the Albarran probably would have used it against other responding Huntsville officers.

Broussard: It doesn't matter that the family doesn't want him to get the death penalty.

Broussard: Albarran's family testified that he was a little moody, but not crazy. A complete change from what the defense was saying during the first part of the trial.

Broussard: If poverty is an excuse for murder, then during the great depression there should have been a large amount of violence across the United States.

Broussard: If we heard another word about Albarran's father being sick, I think we all would have gotten up and left the courtroom.

Broussard: Albarran's tiny village and the life he had there is not an excuse to get out of the death penalty.

Rob Broussard is now giving the rebuttal to the Defense's closing arguments.

Court is in recess until 3pm, so the Golden Family can attend the funeral of Daniel Golden's uncle who passed away over the weekend.

Gardner says the decision the jury makes will live with them for the rest of their lives. It will hit them out of the blue and they will think about whether or not you did the right thing.

Gardner says life without parole is a severe sentence.

Gardner says that if Daniel Golden had been anyone other than a police officer, the jury would not even be considering death or life in prison without parole.

Gardner told the jury they are the life support system for Mr. Albarran.

Gardner says that most major decisions in life are reversable. A death sentence is one that is not.

Jaffe finished up and now Bruce Gardner is also giving an argument to the jury.

Jaffe: The death penalty is only for the worst of the worst.

Jaffe: Life without parole is enough punishment for this crime.

Jaffe: The way in which officer Golden was killed was not heinous.

Jaffe: It's absurd to say that Albarran killed Officer Golden to avoid arrest.

Mr. Jaffe says that if the jurors believe in the concept of "an eye for an eye," then they have vioalted their oath.

Mr. Jaffe says that death is not the most severe punishment.

The proseuction has finished. Mr. Jaffe is now up.

The defense just asked for a mistrial because they claimed Mr. Town asked the jury to put themselves in Daniel's position. The motion was denied.

Town: Golden had already been shot in the stomach and was defenseless. Albarran still fired more shots.

Town: After Albarran shot Golden right below the eye, he made the decision to fire one more shot into his head. This is a clear example that Albarran wanted to finish him off.

Town: Golden begged for mercy. Albarran's answer was to pull out another pistol and fire five more shots.

Town: Albarran showed no pity on Officer Golden.

Town: This murder was torturous.


Make that four objections now.

The defense as objected two times to Mr. Town's closing argument.

Town says the letters and video presented on behalf of Albarran are nice, but they don't excuse what has happened. And the family of Golden will never get another letter from Daniel.

Town says the case as met two requirements for the death penalty. One, the murder was committed to avoid arrest and the murder was especially heinous.

Prosecutor Jay Town says the facts in this case merit the death penalty.

Closing arguments are expected to begin shortly. The judge is currently going over the instructions she will give the jury right before they begin their deliberations.

Sentencing Day Two

Benito's daughter is now being interviewed in the video.

So far the video has shown interviews with about two dozen people who are relatives or friends of Albarran. All ask the jurors to spare his life.

They say that they pray God wil touch the jurors hearts and they will spare Albarran's life.

The video shows several different people asking the jury to spare Albarran's life.

The video is now showing an interview conducted with Albarran's mother.

Court as resumed. We are now watching a 69 minutes video showing Albarran's village (Cacuamanche) in Mexico. The video has an interview with the former mayor of the village.


Roberto Albarran, Benito's brother, is now on the stand.

The second witness of the day is on the stand. She's another sister of Albarran. All of these witnesses basically hit on the same three themes:
1. They grew up poor in Mexico.
2. Their father suffered from mental disease and could be mean.
3. They are Catholics.



Testimony just got underway. Another member of the Albarran family is on the stand. The audience watching the proceedings, is probably the smallest it has been the entire time of the trial.

Albarran Sentencing

Benito's sister is now on the stand talking about their life growing up in Mexico.

The defense is now calling witnesses. A man is now on the stand who lives in the Mexican village where Albarran grew up.


Some of the words Golden's mother said on the stand: He was breath of sunshine. A child is like your heart walking outside of you. You've ripped our hearts out. Wish we could cut the pain out. It's a struggle to get up in the mornings. We mourn so deeply. He took our Daniel from us.


Diana Golden, Daniel's mother, is on the stand.

He's going over an interview with Albarran's wife in which she says he had been drinking and she told him she was going to call the police.

Prosecution has now called investigator Charlie Grey to the stand.

Jaffe says that if the jury gives Albarran the death penatly, they will be killing the love inside him.

Jaffe is still up.

Richard Jaffe is talking to the jury and trying to convince them that Albarran does not deserve the death penalty.

Prosecutor Rob Broussard just told the jury his side will wrap up in two hours.

Court has resumed. Judge Hall is giving the jury some basic instructions on the decision they have as it regards life in prison or the death penalty.

Nothing really happened this morning. Judge Hall entered and said court would be in recess until 1pm. So we are now waiting for court to get started back up.


The sentencing phase was supposed to begin at 9:30 this morning. Albarran showed up in court unshaven. Judge Hall sent him out to shave before the jury was brought in. But now, attorney's for both sides are in the judge's chambers for a motion hearing. We are not exactly sure what those motions might be.

Day 9

The jury began their deliberations again this morning at 9:30. They worked for about two hours last night before going home.

Day 8

Jaffe says there is no way, Albarran could be guilty of capital murder. He says Albarran did not have the intent, required for a capital charge.


Judge Hall gave the jurors a break. Mr. Jaffe has now started back up with his argument.


Jaffe: Witness testimony is a matter of perception.

Jaffe is trying to draw question as to how many shots were actually fired and the sequence they were fired. It's not clear why he is doing this, since they do not contend Albarran did not shoot Officer Golden. Their defense is that he didn't know what he was doing. He doesn't come right out and say it, but he almost seems to be implying to the jury that maybe Officer Golden fired first.


Jaffe is showing the jury crime scene photos.

He says facts show Albarran was "sick."

Jaffe is using a lot of "legalese."

Mr. Jaffe says this is not an open and shut case.

Mr. Jaffe is speaking very low. It's almost hard to hear him.

Richard Jaffe has now started closing arguments for the defense.


Town is wrapping up. He told the jury to be doubtful of a smoke and mirror defense. The devil didn't shoot Golden nor did beer or cocaine.

Town says the defenses argument is all based on maybe. However, the prosecutions side is based on fact. The defense's expert was getting paid 2,000 dollars a day to say what the defense wanted to hear. The prosecution's expert was getting paid nothing to testify.


Town: No evidence Albarran used cocaine or was drunk at time of shooting.

Defense attorney Richard Jaffe has objected three times during Town's argument. He just objected to Town saying, "don't cut him loose."

Town says that on the day of the shooting, Albarran showed a "cold smirk from a cold blooded killer."

CLOSING ARGUMENTS ARE UNDERWAY
Jay Town is giving the closing argument for the prosecution.
Town is reminding the jury of evidence in the case. That Albarran walked out with two guns, because he intended to use them. He shot Officer Golden, even though Golden was begging like a "wounded dog" for his life.

cold smirk from a cold blooded killer

Final arguments were scheduled to start at noon. However, Judge Hall just came in the courtroom to say it would be another 15 to 20 minutes before it would begin. There are a lot more people in the courtroom today. That's typical for closing arguments. I've always found that a little strange, because the meat of a trial always comes from the testimony, not the opening statements or closing arguments. But, people love to hear the closing arguments.

Day 7

We've had to leave the courtroom to go outside to do our live reports for five and six. We believe that the defense is still cross examining Dr. Hooper. For the second day in a row, Judge Hall had to give the jurors time to get up and move around. This after she saw several of them appear to nod off. Closing arguments are now expected tomorrow. The jury could get the case tomorrow afternoon.


Dr. Hooper is still on the stand. He is being cross examined by the defense, a process that has been going on for almost two hours.

Dr. Hooper says Albarran told him that at the moment he pulled the trigger, he had a vision of the devil.


Dr. Hooper says Albarran showed no signs of mental disease during his evaluation.

Dr. James Hooper is on the stand, testifying for the prosecution. He's the director of the Taylor-Hardin Secure Medical Facility in Tuscaloosa. He evaluated Benito Albarran.


A nurse who treated Albarran at the jail on the night of the shooting is now on the stand.


The prosecution is now calling rebuttal witnesses. So far Ed Cain and David Mullins, both with Huntsville PD, have testified.


Breaking News: The defense has rested their case.


Defense Attorney Bruce Gardner just had Dominga point out a scar on the ear of another sister, named Maria. The scar was supposedly caused by a cut from their father, because he was trying to "mark" all of his children.

Dominga Albarran, the sister of Benito, is on the stand. She is talking about their life growing up in Mexico. This is the first time she has been to the U.S. The defense flew her here just to testify.


Testimony began again at 9:30. Another relative of Albarran's is on the stand discussing the supposed mental disease that runs in the family.

Day 6

Court has ended for the day. It will resume at 9am in the morning. The defense still has at least one more witness before they rest their case.


Right before a short recess, Judge Karen Hall said some of the jurors appeared to be nodding off. She told them that if they can't stay awake, they need to tell her so she can dismiss them. There are 12 jurors and four alternates.


Prosecutor Rob Broussard is questioning the diagnostic tools used to evaluate Albarran, trying to make the point that the tests are very open ended.

Prosecutors are ripping into Dr. Silva and his past association with other defendents. He claims to work for both the defense and prosecution in cases, but admits it's been a long time since he's had an association with prosecutors. He also says he's charged 250 dollars per hour in the Albarran case. He is also charging $2000 per day to testify. So far he's made around $14,000 in this case.


Court resumed at 1:15. The prosecution is now cross examining Dr. Silva.


Dr. Silva is now reading letters between Albarran and other family members while he has been in jail. A large number of Albarran's family, including many children, are in the courtroom today.



Dr. Silva is now showing a slide that depicts a family tree of Albarran. According to the slide, five members of the family, including Benito Albarran, suffer from mental defects. The slide depicts the family back to Benito's paternal grandfather.

The defense is still questioning their witness, Dr. Silva. Silva is going over some ideas he mentioned on Friday. This is presumably to refresh the jurors minds. Dr. Silva is saying that Albarran suffers from depression and low self-esteem. He says that if he were treating Albarran, he would put him on medication because he is mentally ill.


Dr. Silva says that on the day of the shooting, Albarran believed his wife was somehow connected with Satan. Albarran would speak to Satan and was angry with him.



Testimony has just gotten underway in the Albarran trial after the weekend break. Dr. Jose Silva is still on the stand. Over the weekend the jurors wanted to know more information about the area of Mexico where Albarran grew up. Jurors are now looking at maps of the state of Mexico, inside the country of Mexico.

Day 5 Albarran Trial

UPDATE: Dr. Jose Silva says that on the day Officer Golden was killed, Benito Albarran was suffering from Cocaine and Alcohol induced psychosis with delusions.



Dr. Silva says another relative of Benito Allbarran also suffers from mental disease. Supposedly she would frequently ride a horse naked through the streets of her Mexican village. She also stole materials from a voting site. Dr. Silva says Allbarran started drinking at the age of 15.

The defense is now going over the psychiatric history of Benito Albarran's father with Dr. Silva. So far there has been very little information about Albarran's own medical evaluation. The defense attorneys tell us Dr. Silva will probably be their last witness of the day.

Dr. Silva says Albarran suffers from impulse control issues. He claims this is the result of genetics, physical abuse and a series of head injuries Albarran suffered as a child.


Shortly after 1pm, court resumed. Dr. Jose Silva from San Jose, California is on the stand. He is a forensic psychologist, called by the Defense.





At 10:20, Benito's cousin, Balentino Albarran is on the stand. He too is talking about family members who have appeared to suffer from mental disease.

The jury is expected to take an early lunch at 11:20.


The trial resumed just after 9am this morning. Currently Albarran's older brother Roberto is on the stand. He lives in Tennessee. He says that their father suffered from mental illness. Roberto says the father once tried to attack a ten-year-old boy with a large knife. He also cut their sisters head with a piece of wood. He says his father also beat him once so hard that blood came out of his back. The father, who still lives in Mexico, has been treated for mental illness. The defense is trying to show a genetic link to mental disease and prove Benito also suffers from the same condition.

Benito Albarran Trial

Wrap-up: The defense in the case ended up calling two witnesses before ending for the day. I wish I could tell you more about who they were. The problem is that the constraints of TV make it a little difficult. We have to be live at five, which means you really can't stay in the courtroom later than 4:20 or so. The courthouse closes at 5, so we can't get back inside. Testimony begins again at 9am Friday.






Today is the fourth day of the Murder Trial of Benito Albarran. He's the man accused of killing Huntsville Police Officer Daniel Golden in 2005. I'm blogging or at least trying to blog from the courtroom. The station has given me a laptop with an aircard.

The first witness this morning is Glen Brown, a forensic scientist here in Huntsville. He is an expert at testing guns. He performed tests on the weapons used in the shooting.


Midday Update: The jury left for lunch just before noon. Mr. Brown finished his testimony about the guns used in the shooting. One of the last things he said was that from his investigation, he determined that Benito Albarran shot Golden in the head from only about three to six inches away.

One of the interesting parts of this trial, are the number of questions the jury is asking. I covered several murder trials, including the Mary Winkler case last year, and I've never seen this happen. The jurors in this case are actually raising their hands during testimony because they have a question. Judge Karen Hall has now told them that they need to submit their questions in writing. Those questions are being answered if possible.

I'm now sitting in the courtroom waiting for the afternoon session to start. The prosecution is expected to wrap up their case and the defense may very well begin today as well.


Afternoon Update: Dr. Emily Ward is now testifying. She performed the autopsy on Officer Golden. The jury is also looking at the pictures taken of Golden's body during that autopsy.


Dr. Ward has now completed her testimony. The prosecution is now preparing to call their last witness.