Jury deliberates in quadruple murder trial

Their fate hangs in the balance, and by the end of the night, accused murderers Leslie Pipersburg and Patrick Robateau will know whether they will face the hangman’s noose or not. The jury comprising seven men and five women, got the case from presiding judge Troadio Gonzales late this evening after more than four hours of summation. In the opening moments of his summation, Gonzales told the jury that their decision must be based solely on the evidence presented in court and that they are not be swayed by emotions or passion. “Be cold and dispassionate,” he told them. The judge reminded the jury that in making their decision they are to have no sympathy or prejudice either for the victims or the accused to the point where it affects their judgement. He also directed the jury to forget any information they might have come in contact with via the media, because if they were to make a decision based on information that was not under oath or subjected to cross examination, that decision would not be fair. Justice Gonzales directed the jury to throw out two charges because no evidence to support them were presented by the prosecution. These are the charge of use of deadly means of harm in connection with the shooting of security guard Carl Ventura and the charge of robbery. Although he asked them to put these two charges from their mind, Gonzales reminded the jurors that that directive does not apply to the murder and attempted murder charges. On the issue of the testimonies, the judge told the jury to consider which witnesses they believe were telling the truth, bearing in mind that some people might have been able to express themselves better than other. The judge also reminded the jury that although Pipersburg and Robateau gave a dock statement toward the end of the trial, the burden of proof is with the prosecution and that the two men were under no obligation to say anything in court. The prosecution case appears to have been based on the theory that Pipersburg and Robateau were acting together when they committed the murders. In that regard, the judge said that if joint enterprise cannot be proven, then the accused cannot be convicted for murder. During the long summation, jurors at times appeared restless. Robateau and Pipersburg looked straight ahead, periodically glancing over at the jury box. Since the jury in a murder trial must deliberate for a minimum of four hours, a verdict in the Pipersburg/Robateau trial is not expected before nine o’clock tonight.