Reporter Adam Reilly’s notes from courtroom C-11 at the Moakley Courthouse in South Boston:
It’s been quiet day at the Bulger trial so far, with none of the drama we saw on Wednesday.
Judge Denise Casper started the day on Thursday by telling the jurors that, as they weigh the sundry “racketeering acts” the government is trying to prove Bulger committed, they should strive for a unanimous “yes” or “no” finding - and that if they can’t reach one at first, they should continue working rather than simply giving up.
The “racketeering acts” aspect of this case is a bit difficult to understand. Simply put, Bulger isn’t actually charged here with many of the crimes he allegedly committed, including 19 murders. Instead, the government is using many of Bulger’s alleged misdeeds to show he committed a “racketeering substantive offense,” the second charge he’s actually facing.
To win a guilty verdict on that charge, the government needs to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed at least two “predicate acts” of racketeering, ranging from murder to extortion to money laundering.
But here’s where it gets tricky: If the jury decides, say, that the government has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Bulger participated in the murders of Deborah Davis and Deborah Hussey, that’s enough to find him guilty on that “racketeering substantive offense” charge. But it doesn’t mean, legally speaking, that Bulger has been found guilty of Davis and Hussey’s murders. For that, separate charges would need to be brought.
Confused? That’s because the law in question is inherently confusing - which might explain why the jury is taking as long as it is.
If it helps, here are the charges Bulger actually faces in this case:
Here in court, we’ve just heard the jury hasn’t yet taken lunch - and that the jury may have another question. More as it develops.
Follow live updates from the courtroom here. WGBH News will provide live coverage when the jury in the Bulger trial reaches a verdict.
