AFTER nine hours of deliberation, the jury in the Reynolds libel case failed to reach a verdict yesterday and Mr Justice French adjourned the hearing until Monday.
The jury foreman told a packed Court 13 that the 11 jurors still could not agree on whether the former Taoiseach, Mr Albert Reynolds, had lied to his colleagues and misled the Dail.
Mr Justice French wished them "good weekend" before adjourning the hearing. Both legal teams agreed that the jury should not sit today because it would not be convenient.
Mr Reynolds, accompanied by his son, Philip, flew to America on Concorde last night to attend a Fianna Fail fund raising function in New York. They planned to be back in London later tonight.
Mr Reynolds is suing the Sunday Times newspaper over an article it published on November 20th, 1994, in its English, Scottish and Welsh editions, in which it accused him of lying to his Cabinet colleagues and misleading the Dail over the extradition of the paedophile priest, Brendan Smyth.
The Sunday Times denies libel, claiming justification and qualified privilege.
The jury resumed its deliberations at 10 a.m. yesterday morning, after considering the evidence for three hours on Thursday afternoon. At 10.50 a.m. there was a flurry of activity and the main parties were summoned to court amid rumours of a verdict.
However, when the jury came in at 11 a.m. the foreman said they had one question: Could they have the transcript relating to the period when Mr Albert Reynolds was in the witness box?
Mr Justice French told the jury that legally they were not entitled to review the transcripts, which covered seven days of live evidence. But he added that if they would put in writing the matters "on which you wish your memories to be refreshed about", then the court would do what it could to help.
The jury retired to draw up its questions, and everyone was called back to court at 12.07 p.m. Mr Justice French read the jury's questions to the court: "The jury request: 1. All matters relating to why Mr Reynolds did not mention the Duggan case to the Dail in his speech on Tuesday (questions and answers) and 2. Perhaps - more to follow."
This second question prompted both legal teams, Mr Reynolds, and several of the jurors to laugh. Lord Gareth Williams QC, counsel for Mr Reynolds, pointed out that there were nine volumes of Mr Reynolds's evidence, so it would not be realistic to assemble everything before lunchtime. Mr James Price QC, counsel for the Sunday Times, concurred, and it was agreed to aim to have the material ready for Mr Justice French to read out to the jury after lunch.
At 2 p.m., Mr Justice French began to read selected extracts from Mr Reynolds's evidence, explaining why he had not mentioned the Duggan case during his speech to the Dail on November 15th 1994. Out of the seven days Mr Reynolds spent in the witness box, four dealt with this matter.
Among the selected extracts, the jury heard Mr Reynolds testify that he had told the "Dail all the information I had available at that time" and there was "no reason" for him to hide anything.
During cross examination, the jury heard Mr Reynolds state that he had "forgotten about the Duggan case" before he made his speech. "I had dealt with it on the Monday and it had not been brought back before me at that stage on the Tuesday," he said.
Mr Reynolds still seemed shaken by his fall on Thursday, and said during the lunchtime adjournment that he was taking painkillers. Although his doctor had advised him to wear a sling, Mr Reynolds told journalists that he did not want to appear in court with a sling. His son, Philip, and daughters, Emer and Leonie, sat with him throughout yesterday's hearing.