Wed, 3 Aug 2005      Jury Deliberating in Coach's Trial A DeKalb County jury began deliberations Wednesday afternoon in the child molestation trail of McNair High School football coach Johnny Gilbert. The jury received the case at about 4:30 p.m. Earlier in the day, the defense renewed its call for the judge to acquit the coach. Prosecuting attorneys objected to the request and Judge Mark Anthony Scott ultimately denied the motion for Gilbert’s acquittal on one count of enticing a child for indecent purposes and two counts of sexual assault against a person in custody. A total of six charges had been brought against Gilbert, but Judge Scott dismissed three of them on Tuesday. Both sides agree there is no hard evidence in the case, and so jurors have to decide on whom to believe –- the teenage accusers or the coach. Assistant District Attorney Sheila Connors, during her closing arguments, said Gilbert lied from the beginning when police first confronted him that two teens -– a boy and a girl -– were accusing him of trying to force them to have sex with each other while he watched. The alleged incident occurred at the back of the school during halftime of a basketball game on January 31. Defense attorney Keith Adams disputed the prosecution's, and said it was the teens who were lying about what occurred. “There was no crime committed,” Adams said. “What [the teens] said occurred didn’t occur. I don’t know what they were really doing back there behind that school. I wasn’ t there, [the prosecutors] don’t know, they weren’t there, Mr. Gilbert doesn’t know because he, sure as heck, was not there,” he said. “They’re back there having sex. Someone comes upon them and catches them,” and so they concocted the story, Adams said. Gilbert did not testify during the trial. Jurors did hear Gilbert on an audio recording, on which, the prosecution says, Gilbert is caught in a lie and caught being evasive. The defense disputes that characterization. Jurors said they want to hear that recording again and they will Thursday morning. http://www.11alive.com/news/usnews_article.aspx?storyid=67195 Back To Guvment Skool Page 8 COPYRIGHT "DUHMAG.COM" 2005