Lafayette v. Mississippi
Annotate this CaseAt Anthony Lafayette's murder trial, when the jury informed the trial judge that it could not reach a unanimous verdict, the judge responded to the jurors that if they could not reach a verdict, he would call a new jury that would be "reasonable and fair" and that he hoped not to put the "County and State to the expense" if he could get around it. Lafayette moved for a mistrial, but the judge denied the motion, and Lafayette was convicted of manslaughter. On review, the Supreme Court found that the trial judge's instruction was inappropriate, and it "require[d]" that the Court reverse and remand the case for a new trial.
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