The 12 jurors in Britney Spears‘ ongoing misdemeanor trial for driving without a license continued to be deadlocked on Monday afternoon, at the end of their second day of deliberations.
The mostly female jury began deliberations on Friday for two hours at a Van Nuys, Calif., courthouse before taking a break for the weekend. The judge in the case, James Steele, had originally given the jurors until 1:30pm, L.A. time, Monday to come to a decision, but after three votes, they are still unable to come to a unanimous decision.
Shortly after 2:30pm PT, Judge Steele asked the jury into the courtroom and polled them individually on whether or not they thought a unified verdict could be reached. The jury foreman replied, "Personally, I don’t think so," while a handful of others thought that it was still a possibility.
All three ballots cast by the jury during their two days of deliberation have come back the same way, 10-2, though it was not announced whether that vote was leaning toward finding Brit guilty or toward acquitting her.
"Everyone has become more entrenched in their position," Juror #16 told the judge.
At that point, the judge asked the jurors to reconvene one final time in an attempt to work out their differences. However, by day’s end, they were still unable to reach a decision, so deliberations continued on into a third day.
CLICK HERE for OK!’s Ultimate Britney Gallery!
So what’s taking the jury so long to decide?
"There are extraneous issues," explains Britney’s attorney, J. Michael Flannagan, to OK!. "She says she’s a Louisiana resident. She wouldn’t be here right now if not for the fact that she has to be here with her kids right now."
Continues Flannagan, "She considers herself a Louisiana girl. She’s building a new house in Louisiana. She’s maintaining her old house in Louisiana. She wants to go back to Louisiana."
To get some clarity, OK! spoke to its own legal eagle, who explained, "What makes Britney’s case tricky is that she is claiming multiple ‘residences.’ In other words, a jury will have to decide where she spends the most time, which home she actually lives in, before determining a verdict in this case.
"Where a person has several ‘residences,’ and it is disputed which is his or her ‘permanent’ residence or domicile, it will be a matter of proof as to which is the state of domicile or permanent residency."
Click here for OK!’s Ultimate Britney gallery!
Although the Britster herself has not appeared in court, a day’s worth of testimony and arguments were presented to the jury last week. The case revolves around charges filed after the pop star hit a parked car and fled the scene. She was later found to be driving with a Louisiana, not California, driver’s license, a misdemeanor in the state that carries a maximum fine of $1,500 and up to six months in prison.
Click here for OK!’s gallery of how the incident went down.
The prosecution claims Brit was obligated to obtain a California driver’s license, but her attorney said the "Womanizer" singer really lives in Louisiana, a state she’s properly licensed in.
Britney’s lawyer previously rejected a plea deal, citing her celebrity status as a reason to target her.
Echoing that sentiment, a court insider remarked, "If she was any other person, she wouldn’t even get a jury," in the court room today.
