TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — A judge in the murder trial of a U.S. Border Patrol agent charged in the fatal shooting of a rock-throwing Mexican teenager told jurors to keep trying to reach a verdict after they reported they were unable to reach a unanimous decision.
FILE – In this Dec. 4, 2017, file photo, a portrait of 16-year-old Mexican youth Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez, who was shot and killed in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, is displayed on the Nogales street where he was killed that runs parallel with the U.S. border. Closing arguments are expected in Tucson, Ariz., this week in the trial of U.S. Border Patrol agent Lonnie Swartz, charged in the 2012 fatal shooting 16-year-old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez across the Mexican border. (AP Photo/Anita Snow, file)
U.S. District Judge Raner Collins on Friday sent the jurors back for two hours of deliberations before adjourning for the weekend. The jury will return to court in Tucson Monday morning.
Swartz is charged in the 2012 killing of 16-year-old Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez. He has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder.
Prosecutors concede the teen was throwing rocks at agents when he was shot.
Collins says the jury can reach a verdict of voluntary or involuntary manslaughter if they can’t agree on a murder conviction.
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