Jennifer Hudson Family Murder Trial: No Verdict After Day 2
After a three-week trial and 12 hours of deliberation over the course of two days, a Chicago jury is still undecided as to the fate of William Balfour, the man accused of murdering three members of Jennifer Hudson's family almost four years ago.
Deliberation began on Wednesday, May 9, but the jury was unable to come to a conclusion by the end of the day after reviewing the evidence for four hours. After more than seven hours of deliberation on Thursday, the jury still has not delivered a verdict for Balfour. They will begin reviewing the evidence again Friday morning.
In Wednesday's closing arguments, the prosecution urged the jurors to convict Hudson's brother-in-law due to the "tsunami" of circumstantial evidence, including witness testimonies that Balfour repeatedly threatened to kill his wife's family and firearm-related evidence. The defense noted that neither Balfour's DNA nor fingerprints were found at the scene.
Hudson's mother Darnell Donerson, 57, brother Jason Hudson, 29, and nephew Julian King, 7, were found murdered in October 2008. Donerson and Hudson were found shot in the family's Chicago home, and King was found shot to death several days later in a stolen SUV.
On the first day of the trial, an upset Jennifer Hudson took the stand and testified that she had repeatedly warned her sister, Julia, not to marry Balfour, saying, "We didn't like the way he treated her, and I didn't like the way he treated my nephew [Balfour's son-in-law]." Just last year, Julia was granted a divorce from Balfour by the courts.
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