After two weeks of court proceedings, jury deliberation has begun in the trial of Michael Gordon Jackson.
Jackson is on trial for contravention of a custody order, after allegedly abducting his daughter in Nov. 2021 until Feb. 2022 to avoid her receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.
The question for the jury to decide is whether Jackson guilty beyond a reasonable doubt that he intended to deprive his ex-wife possession of the child.
“In this trial I am the judge of the law, and you are the judge of the facts,” Justice Heather MacMillian-Brown told the jury.
Jurors have heard throughout the trial, including from the accused himself, that Jackson took the girl to stop her from being vaccinated for COVID-19. He believed his ex-wife would have their child vaccinated. Jackson thought it would cause harm.
MacMillian-Brown summarized the events of the trial to the jury Friday morning, going through each witness and outlining key elements of their testimony.
The jury will be sequestered until a unanimous decision is reached.
— More to come.