Medina v. State

309 Ga. 432

FINAL COPY S20A0505. MEDINA v. THE STATE. PETERSON, Justice. Jury verdicts are serious things. In this murder case, the jury reached a verdict as to malice murder but was deadlocked on the remaining counts. The parties and the trial court agreed to a mistrial on all counts. Before the trial court actually declared the mistrial, however, it instructed the jury to disclose its verdict. When the jury reported its not guilty verdict on the malice murder count and the judge read it in open court, all of the requirements for formally returning a verdict on that count were fulfilled and…