(NECN: Jackie Bruno, Boston) - We heard from a lot of victims’ families both in court and outside of it Wednesday, but we also heard from a few of the jurors… one of whom says, the trial was unfair.
“It was not a fair trial. It was a circus. It was a sham.”
That was the strong accusation from Juror Number 12, Janet Uhlar:
“We don’t know half of what the FBI did, none of us do. You guys don’t. ask the questions. That’s what you’re here for…Ask the hard questions and demand the answers.”
She says she demanded answers and went to the source, writing letters to Whitey Bulger himself.
Uhlar says Bulger has written her, and while she doesn’t know if it’s the truth, she says at least she has heard from other people.
But when we asked what Bulger wrote back, this is what she said:
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“I’m not telling you what he told me right now. Because that’s my business and his right now. I’m not giving it to you guys.”
Despite this fervor, Uhlar did vote to convict whitey of some of the counts, but she still offered this praise to the defense:
“They did an amazing job with what they were given.”
She says she wishes the government saved everyone the grief of a trial.
“Bulger wanted to plead guilty from the get go…18 peoples’ lives were held captive for 10 weeks because we were called in to serve on this jury.”
That’s an interesting perspective from a very angry juror. Most of the other jurors who have spoken out have said they did what they could with the evidence given and some have even apologized to victims’ families who they couldn’t find a guilty verdict for.
