That's the most surprising part to me. Is there something missing from the story? Were the jurors not presented the full picture?
I note that Wikipedia writes this[1] about felony murder in the US:
When the government seeks to impose the death penalty on someone convicted of felony murder, the Eighth Amendment has been interpreted so as to impose additional limitations on the state power. The death penalty may not be imposed if the defendant is merely a minor participant and did not actually kill or intend to kill. However, the death penalty may be imposed if the defendant is a major participant in the underlying felony and exhibits extreme indifference to human life.
Thus it would appear as if the prosecution successfully argued that he was a major participant, and that's what the jurors are regretting?
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felony_murder_rule#United_Stat...
It's also possible that they did have a vote and voted to recommend a death sentence, however, it would still be entirely up to the judge to follow though with that recommendation. Jury sentencing guidelines are entirely non-binding. Judges are bound by the guidelines defined by the letter of the law and other cases.
We may never know if it was as black and white as them voting for "Execute or not" or if it was just the outcome of the jury instructions. Both cases are reasonable for a jury member to feel guilt over.
andsoitis•15h ago