CLARKSVILLE — A jury has again been unable to reach a verdict in the murder trial of Gary Dunn.
The jury foreman told Johnson County Circuit Judge Bill Pearson on Friday night that the group was unable to agree on a verdict. Pearson then declared a mistrial.
It marked the second mistrial for Dunn after a proceeding that began last April also ended in a hung jury. Dunn is accused of killing Nona Dirksmeyer, the 19-year-old Arkansas Tech student who was fatally beaten in her Russellville apartment.
Special prosecutor H.G. Foster said afterward that the state will hold another trial.
Dunn shook hands with his attorneys but said nothing as he was led from the courthouse into an Arkansas State Police squad car.
Family members cited a gag order in the case as they declined comment.
The jury spent three hours Thursday and about 11 hours Friday discussing the case before sending a note to Pearson saying they were deadlocked 8-4. Pearson briefly questioned the foreman, who said the group had gone through all the evidence and all the witnesses, before declaring the mistrial.
Defense attorneys for Dunn worked throughout the two-and-a-half week trial to convince the jury the real killer was Kevin Jones, Dirksmeyer's boyfriend who was acquitted of the murder in 2007.