By Scott North
Herald Writer
A mistrial was declared Monday after a Snohomish County jury was unable to decide whether a fatal Aug. 8 shooting in Granite Falls was murder or self-defense.
After 1 1/2days of deliberations, jurors Monday announced they were hopelessly deadlocked in the case of Kenneth Charles Jensen, 57, who was charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of Martin Frank, 40.
Jurors split 9-3 in favor of acquittal. The panel met briefly with lawyers on both sides, and most said they felt the evidence showed Jensen was in fear of Frank when he shot and may not have had other alternatives, deputy prosecutor David Hiltner said.
A new trial date was set for Feb. 8. Jensen was ordered to remain behind bars in lieu of $250,000 bail.
"We are going to talk about" whether the case will be retried, Hiltner said.
Jurors were told the defendant and Frank had been arguing for years and routinely greeted each other with rude gestures, curses and statements questioning the other’s mental health or sexuality.
Frank was shot in the chest with a .357-caliber Magnum handgun. The fatal confrontation occurred after Jensen rode his bicycle past Frank’s home. Frank was gripping the handlebars of Jensen’s bicycle when the defendant fired a pistol he had concealed inside a leather pouch.
Hiltner had argued Jensen couldn’t claim self-defense because he had initiated the confrontation, and the force he used wasn’t reasonable. He called the shooting "the equivalent to a warning shot to the chest."
Public defender Richard Tassano told jurors that Frank had "terrorized" Jensen and others in his neighborhood for years and had physically escalated the confrontation that day. Evidence showed the men sometimes exchanged insults two to three times a day.
You can call Herald Writer Scott North at 425-339-3431
or send e-mail to north@heraldnet.com.
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