Murder Trial Jury Resumes Deliberations

After a break for the weekend, the jury in the trial of Sina Khankhanian will resume deliberations this morning at the Airport Courthouse. Khankhanian could be convicted of second-degree murder or involuntary manslaughter in the 2010 death of Malibu eighth-grader .

The jury, eight men and four women, met Thursday afternoon and for about five hours on Friday. Whether Khankhanian killed Emily on April 3, 2010 when his blue Mitsubishi Lancer struck and killed her while she stood on the Pacific Coast Highway shoulder near Heathercliff Road is not in dispute. What the jury must decide is if the action was murder or manslaughter, or if he is not guilty of either crime (an unlikely conclusion, since even Khankhanian's lawyer said his client was guilty of manslaughter).

If convicted of murder, Khankhanian would receive a mandatory prison sentence of 15 years to life. A manslaughter conviction would mean a maximum sentence of four years in custody.