Live: Jury reaches verdict in Pike County murder trial
UPDATE: The jury has reached a verdict. Follow live coverage here.
ORIGINAL REPORT: WAVERLY, Ohio – After three hours of deliberation Wednesday morning, the jury in the Pike County murder trial was called back to the courtroom after jurors had requested a transcript of the testimony of Edward "Jake" Wagner.
Jurors began deliberating at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. They're considering 22 counts against George Wagner IV, including eight counts of aggravated murder for the 2016 deaths of eight members of the Rhoden family.
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Special Prosecutor Angela Canepa objected to providing any transcripts.
"The danger is (jurors) would zero in on a paragraph or two or three somewhere in those 764 pages," Canepa said.
Wagner IV's lead defense attorney supported the request. "They should have accurate information to make a determination," said John P. Parker.
Judge Randy Deering sided with the defense and called the jury back to give instructions on the transcript's use. He presented two concerns with providing the 764-page transcript. The first concern was that jurors may give more emphasis to Jake Wagner's testimony because they have it in writing, while relying on their recollection of testimony from the other witnesses. The second concern was that jurors would take parts of the testimony out of context, given the length of the transcript.
"Sometimes testimony will sound one way when it's being asked about one side and sound another way when it's being asked about the other side," Deering said. "If you have the transcript and only read one side, it is taken out context and therefore the full weight of the testimony may not be assessed."
Jurors then decided not to receive a copy and left the courtroom for further deliberations.
.#PikeCountyMassacre jury -- which began deliberating in the #GeorgeWagnerIV case at 8:30 a.m. today -- was just called into the courtroom for its request for a trial transcript. Jurors had sent word to the judge that they wanted to see the testimony of Edward "Jake" Wagner. 1/6
— Patricia Gallagher Newberry (@pattinewberry) November 30, 2022
This story will be updated.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Jury reaches verdict in Pike County murder trial
