New York (CNN) -- Deliberations are expected to continue Tuesday in the case of the first Guantanamo detainee to be tried in a U.S. civilian court.
But a note from a juror Monday fueled growing speculation over a possible hung jury in the New York trial of accused terrorist conspirator Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani.
The 36-year-old Tanzanian faces charges of conspiracy and murder in the 1998 attacks on U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, that killed 224 people. He was moved to the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in 2006 and held there until last year.
On Monday Judge Lewis Kaplan refused a juror's request to be excused from the case and told defense attorneys it was not grounds for a mistrial. Kaplan read aloud a note that he received from the juror, who asked to be "excused or exchanged" and claimed to have been chastised after disagreeing with the conclusions of fellow jurors.
Defense attorneys have maintained that Ghailani was exploited by al Qaeda, the group that claimed responsibility for the attacks.
"Call him a dupe, call him a pawn -- used, set up like a bowling pin, in the immortal words of Jerry Garcia," defense attorney Peter Quijano said. "But don't call him guilty."
The prosecution, which made its closing arguments November 8, has accused Ghailani of 285 counts of conspiracy and terrorism-related charges.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Harry Chernoff said he played a key role in securing the trucks that carried the bomb in Tanzania and securing other materials.
"He is a mass murderer who has the blood of hundreds on his hands," Chernoff told the jury.
The trial, which began in October, has moved more quickly than originally anticipated.
CNN
