Jury Deadlocks In Willie Mae Ryan Trial
By: Import User
Updated: January 7, 2009
A mistrial has been declared in El Dorado after jurors deadlocked on whether Gayla Smith
Wilson was guilty of capital murder. Wilson was charged in the fatal beating of an 81-year-old nursing home patient.
After about five-and-a-half hours of deliberations this afternoon, the jury reported to Union County Circuit Judge Carol Anthony that they were split seven-four-and-one. They said there
was no hope of resolving the impasse. It could not be learned how many jurors were for conviction, how many for acquittal.
Prosecutor Jamie Pratt said he likely would retry Wilson. The state has one year to make that decision and, in the meantime, Wilson will remain in jail. Wilson`s attorneys, public defenders
Katherine Streett and Teri Chambers, declined to comment.
Closing arguments were delivered this morning after lawyers for Wilson rested their case on Wednesday.
The 45-year-old Wilson, a former nursing aide at Dallas County Nursing Home in Fordyce, was accused of using brass knuckles in the fatal beating of Willie Mae Ryan.
