Dally Jury Ends Week Without a Verdict

Jurors in the Michael Dally murder trial deliberated for a fourth day Friday without reaching a verdict. The panel is expected to return to Ventura County Superior Court on Monday for further deliberations.

Dally, 37, is charged with murder, kidnapping and conspiracy for allegedly planning the 1996 slaying of his wife, Sherri, with his former lover, Diana Haun. She was convicted of the same charges last fall and sentenced to life in prison.

In closing arguments last week, prosecutors argued that Michael Dally hated his wife but was unwilling to suffer the financial consequences of a divorce. Instead, they argued, he persuaded Haun to kill his wife and instructed her how to do it.

But defense attorneys told the jury that their client played no role in his wife’s slaying. Instead, they suggested Haun was jealous, obsessed with her married boyfriend, and murdered Sherri Dally to keep him for herself.