A Madison County jury spent its second full day Thursday deliberating a sentence for LaJeromeny Brown, convicted Tuesday of capital murder in the shooting of Huntsville police officer Billy Clardy III.

The jury in cases with capital murder convictions is tasked with determining the sentence for the killer – the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. The jury will return to continue deliberations Friday morning.

Brown shot and killed Clardy on Dec. 6, 2019, during an undercover drug operation at an abandoned house on Levert Street in north Huntsville. Brown fled the scene after the shooting but was apprehended by other undercover agents minutes later.

Meanwhile, defense attorneys argued Thursday morning before Circuit Judge Chris Comer for a mistrial after a Huntsville television crew captured images of jurors leaving the courthouse in the background of a live update earlier this week. The attorneys said at least six jurors could have been identified by the video footage that aired on WAFF-Channel 48.

Defense attorney Eric Wood said revealing the identities of the anonymous jurors through the video jeopardized Brown’s right to a fair trial.

Prosecutors Tim Gann and Tim Douthit dismissed the concerns.

“If this is not the stupidest thing I’ve heard of, it’s close,” Douthit told the judge during the hearing. “That I’ve got to say.”

The judge noted the defense attorneys did not cite any damage done to the case in making their argument. He then brought the jury back into the courtroom, apologized for interrupting their deliberations and asked if anything outside the courtroom had happened to a juror that would influence their opinion or cause them to not act in a fair manner. None of the jurors raised a hand.

Comer then asked if any juror had received external pressure regarding their participation as a juror and again no jurors raised their hand.

The judge had said during the hearing – which took place outside the presence of the jury – that if no jurors acknowledged a problem, the concern was a “non-issue.”

After the jury left for the day Wednesday, Comer called the media covering the trial into his chambers. The judge said he had heard there was possible television video showing some of the jurors and reminded media members to avoid doing so going forward.

Comer told the attorneys about the meeting with the media during the hearing.

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