This article is more than 1 year old

Palin email jury reaches verdicts on 3 of 4 counts

Still deadlocked on one

The jury deciding the fate of the man accused of breaching Sarah Palin's Yahoo Mail account has reached a verdict on three of the charges filed against him but can't come to a decision about the fourth, according to news reports.

In a note to US District Judge Thomas W. Phillips, jurors wrote: "Some of us feel not all jurors are following the jury instruction," according to The Knoxville News. They also said they were deadlocked on the charge of identity theft.

The communication came of the third day of deliberations in the trial of David C. Kernell, who was charged with four felonies for using publicly available information to access Palin's email without permission. During closing arguments in the case, Kernell's attorney said there was no criminal intent in the act. Prosecutors argue the 2008 breach was part of a plot to disrupt Palin's campaign to become the next vice president of the United States.

The other three felonies filed against Kernell are wire fraud, unlawfully obtaining information from a protected computer, and destruction of records to hamper a federal investigation. The jury didn't indicate if their unanimous verdict was guilty or not guilty.

Phillips didn't ask. He told the jury to continue deliberating on the remaining count and supplied them with a copy of the law. They later adjourned for the day and are schedule to return on Friday. ®

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