Mistrial declared as jury can’t agree on hate-crime charge in fatal fight, Jury can’t decide if accused got in fight because he thought the victim was gay.
Story By Crystal Carreon
Source: June 19th Sacramento Bee

A mistrial was declared Wednesday in Sacramento Superior Court on hate-crime charges against a man linked to a volatile feud at Lake Natoma last summer that killed Satender Singh. After more than four days of tense deliberations, the jury of seven women and five men could not agree on whether the defendant was involved in the confrontation because he believed Singh was gay. The panel emerged before noon and told Judge Gary S. Mullen that they were “irrevocably deadlocked” on the hate- crime allegation that Aleksandr Shevchenko, 22, faced for his role in last year’s fight.

The Sacramento man was found guilty on two misdemeanor counts: disturbing the peace and simple assault for throwing a bottle. He could face a maximum sentence of about nine months in jail when he returns to court on July 11. It remained unclear Wednesday whether the District Attorney’s Office would re-try Shevchenko on the controversial hate-crime charge. “The charge is still in existence,” said Deputy District Attorney Sean Laird, who prosecuted the case. “It’s not resolved. … It’s not anything we have dropped or conceded.”

Read Full Story: http://www.sacbee.com/folsom/story/1024340.html#comments_here