A jury of eight women and four men deliberated for about eight hours April 27 and 28 before finding Nelms not guilty of two counts of first-degree arson. Forewoman Brenda Crumley said the jury based its decision mainly on the fact that the prosecution did not present any physical evidence that linked Nelms to the fire, according to the April 29 Athens Banner-Herald.
Defense attorney Gerald Brown did not present a defense in the trial, arguing that prosecutors never proved how the fire started. “The only thing they have are unexplained fires,” he said in the April 27 Banner-Herald. “That’s not enough evidence to send to the jury.”
Western Judicial Circuit District Attorney Ken Maudlin said the investigation into the fire, which caused at least $12 million in damages, will not be reopened, according to the April 29 Red and Black campus newspaper. University Librarian Bill Potter said, “It’s been almost two years now. We would have wanted closure, but you look forward, not back.”
Posted April 29, 2005.