After two days of trial and nearly three hours of jury deliberation Tuesday, the manslaughter trial for Desiree Catlett ended in mistrial with the jury unable to come to a verdict.
The votes came down to seven to four with one undecided on a verdict for Catlett, who is accused in the 2016 death of her nine-month old son. Defense attorney Michael Thompson, who represents Catlett, says the mistrial is indicative that she shouldn’t have been tried at all.
Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Katherine Foster says they will now move forward, whether that be by coming to a resolution with the defense or by trying the case again in the future.
Circuit Judge John Atkins set a pretrial hearing for May 16, where a new trial date could potentially be set. Details were revealed during the trial that the nine-month old had fallen back into a bathtub while being bathed. Catlett is charged with second-degree manslaughter.