The defense and prosecution both agree that it's a relief to have the trial over.
MARQUETTE/MANISTIQUE -- Now that the Thomas Richardson murder trial is over and the gag order has been lifted, we're finally hearing from the attorneys in the case. They've been devoting a majority of their time before and during the trial to make their case to the jury.
The defense and prosecution both agree that it's a relief to have the trial over, but that's about where their agreement on the case ends.
Richardson was found guilty of first degree murder Wednesday.
Although it was a disappointing verdict for the defense, they say they were prepared for it.
"Tom maintained his composure very well. I think he is a man of great faith, and he knows he'll ultimately prevail in this matter," said Defense Attorney Karl Numinen.
Between Defense Attorneys Karl Numinen and Jason Elmore and Prosecutor Karen Bahrman, the case made for long days with several pre-trial interviews and reading thousands of pages of documents.
"It pretty much dominated my whole life for at least the last year,” Bahrman said.
According to Numinen, Bahrman's five weeks of character witnesses had an impact on the jury.
"It seems to me that the prosecution’s strongest evidence was the fact that so many people had so many bad things to say about him," Numinen said.
Bahrman says her biggest hurdle was convincing the jury that circumstantial evidence was as important, or more important, than direct evidence.
"It doesn't depend on the credibility of witnesses,” Bahrman said. “Circumstantial evidence doesn't lie, it's not mistaken, and it has no agenda."
Although Numinen says both he and Richardson accept the jury's verdict, they still see grounds for appeal based on legal rulings prior to the trial and during the trial.
"The rules of evidence say that you cannot convict somebody based on their character or propensity to commit a crime, and it seems to me that since there was no evidence of the crime itself; that's what took place here," Numinen said.
Bahrman says she's not worried about a post conviction appeal. Still Numinen says as soon as Richardson is sentenced on May 19, he'll immediately file an appeal.
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