Jurors went home Thursday after seven and a half hours of deliberations, and no verdict was reached in the trial of the two men charged in the death of Philadelphia Police Sgt. Richard Mendez and the wounding of Officer Raul Ortiz.
The jury had a total of five questions Thursday, mostly about having another look at some of the evidence presented at trial.
Defendants Yobranny Martinez-Fernandez and Hendrick Pena-Fernandez face the possibility of life in prison if convicted. They’ve both been charged with murder of a law enforcement officer, along with other offenses, and pleaded not guilty. A third defendant named Alexander Batista-Polanco pleaded guilty to murder last week.
Attorneys for each defendant haven’t commented since the start of the trial, and prosecutors from the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office have also declined to comment.
The shooting happened on Oct. 12, 2023, inside a parking garage at Philadelphia International Airport.
Mendez and Ortiz were heading into work at the airport when prosecutors say they interrupted an attempted car theft in a parking garage. Martinez-Fernandez and Pena-Fernandez, along with two others, were in the process of stealing a car in a parking garage at PHL.
Prosecutors say Mendez and Ortiz scuffled with one of the suspects, which led to the shooting. Mendez died in the airport garage from at least three gunshot wounds, while Ortiz was hit in the arm.
Defense attorneys have argued that the incident was not captured on camera and eyewitnesses did not directly see what happened. They have also said Martinez-Fernandez and Pena-Fernandez did not know Mendez was a police officer. Prosecutors in their closing argument showed cellphone data that places both men at the scene of the crime.
Shortly before they were sent home, Judge Giovanni Campbell told jurors to be courteous and respectful of each other.
The trial will resume at 9 a.m. on Friday.
