Court Opinion

ID: 9680732
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 07:37:37.235519+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:17:30.187878
License: Public Domain

McMILLIAN, Judge
(dissenting).
I dissent.
While I recognize that whether or not the “Hammer” should be swung and when to do so is discretionary with the trial court, State v. Barron, Mo., 465 S.W.2d 523, in my opinion, in this case there was an abuse of discretion. Here the defendant was charged with a very grave offense. The trial lasted for a day and a half; six witnesses testified, one of whom was recalled for further examination; twelve exhibits were placed before the jury; and final arguments were thereafter made (the record is silent as to the time allowed). Within an hour and a half, the foreman reported back to the court that they stood “ten guilty, one undecided, and one not guilty”, and that a verdict could not be reached. Rather than returning them back to the jury room for further deliberations, the court gave the so-called “Hammer.” Forty minutes later the jury returned with a verdict of guilty.
In this case the jury had to evaluate and consider testimony of six witnesses, inspect twelve exhibits, put into proper perspective the final arguments of counsel and to relate the seven instructions given by the court to the facts as found. While there is no mathematical formula which specifically prescribes the amount of time to be allowed for deliberation in ratio to the length of trial time and the number of witnesses, our test has always been one of reasonableness. Even though I understand that trial judges are overworked, and their dockets are overcrowded, yet in the desire *28to bring cases to a conclusion they can ill afford to put into question the quality of the trial given.
We must not underestimate the intelligence of our jurors, whom, in my opinion, without being told by the court know that trials are costly, that a verdict should be reached in every case, and that the opinion of other jurors should be respected. Taking into consideration the length of trial time, the number of witnesses that testified, the issues involved, the number of exhibits to be examined, and the time required to evaluate the final arguments, I hold that the giving of the “Hammer” instruction No. 8 after the lapse of an hour and a half was an abuse of discretion. Therefore, I would reverse the conviction and order a new trial for the prejudicially given Instruction No. 8.