Yanez trial judge offers jurors support in letter

In a rare post-trial letter, the judge who presided over the manslaughter case against St. Anthony police officer Jeronimo Yanez has offered his reflections to the jurors that decided the case.

Ramsey County District Judge William Leary handled the case stemming from the shooting death of Philando Castile during a traffic stop a year ago. Yanez faced manslaughter and two weapons charges. A jury found the officer not guilty on June 16 after a two-week trial and five days of deliberations.

Leary didn't share his own judgment about Yanez's culpability in the matter, but said the verdict was "fully supported by a fair interpretation of the evidence and the law."

Leary also acknowledged criticism of the verdict, and said he believed that it was based on the dashcam video of the shooting and issues the jury was never asked to address.

"You were never asked to decide whether racism continues to exist, whether certain members of the community are disproportionately affected by police tactics or whether police training is ineffective," Leary wrote. "You were simply asked to determine, beyond a reasonable doubt, whether a crime had been committed."

Leary made reference again to the elements of manslaughter in statutes, the most serious charge filed against Yanez in November.

He also made indirect reference to a standard for police use of force, outlined in a key 1989 U.S. Supreme Court case, Graham v. Connor, which shaped the jury instructions. Leary said the standard required prosecutors to prove "that a reasonable and prudent officer would have realized that, in those few seconds and under circumstances that are tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving, the words he was choosing, his tone of voice and his failure to create 'time and space' were creating an unreasonable, substantial and unjustifiable risk."

The letter also included a quote from Malcom X, stressing the importance of justice and truth in all circumstances. It ended with Leary's thanks for the service of the jurors.

"If we are to protect the jury process now and in the future, and if we are to encourage all of us to be willing to serve as jurors, then I would hope your work will soon be understood for what you were asked to do and respected for what you did do," Leary said.