Astorga jury still out on execution

SANTA FE (KRQE) - Jurors deciding whether cop killer Michael Astorga should live or die deliberated for a second day Thursday without reaching a verdict.

When the deliberations reached 10 1/2 hours, Astorga's attorney Gary Mitchell said it's the longest a jury has been out in his lengthy career of death-penalty cases.

Jurors stopped for a while during the morning to ask for the testimony of Mike King, a forensic crime-scene reconstructionist.

But the prosecution and defense both objected, and the judge told jurors they must rely on their notes.

A different jury in 2010 convicted Astorga of killing Bernalillo County sheriff's Deputy James McGrane Jr. during a routine traffic stop near Tijeras in 2006.

Astorga was wanted for murder at the time, and prosecutors said the believe Astorga shot McGrane to avoid arrest. Astorga later was convicted of that murder, too.

He will face the death penalty if all 12 jurors agree or life in prison plus 13 1/2 years if they don't.