Diallo Jurors Consider Fate of 4 Officers

The jury in the case of four white policemen charged with killing an unarmed black man began deliberating Wednesday, after the judge said the jurors could acquit if they believed the officers acted in self-defense.

The officers contend that they fired 41 bullets at Amadou Diallo because they thought he had a gun and was threatening them.

Justice Joseph Teresi spent more than three hours going over the legal instructions for each of 24 criminal counts before deliberations began. The jurors were sequestered after failing to reach a verdict in six hours of deliberations.

Teresi gave the jurors the option of considering charges other than murder and told them the law allows police officers to stop and question someone if wrongdoing is suspected.

“You should figuratively put yourselves in the shoes of each defendant and consider how the situation appeared to him,” the judge said. “You should consider what Amadou Diallo did before or during the encounter.”

Sean Carroll, 37, Edward McMellon, 27, Kenneth Boss, 28, and Richard Murphy, 27, have pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder. They face maximum prison terms of 25 years to life if convicted.

Lesser charges include second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.