The morning after a big trial ends, reporters are always trying to think of a way to follow up on the verdict (especially when it comes down after 8:00 p.m. One thing we like to try to do is talk with the jurors. Judge McGinnis told the jurors they didn't have to speak with anyone about the case or the deliberations. He said they could if they wanted to, but they weren't required to do so. That always makes reporters nervous! We love to talk to people and tell their stories. We also love to listen to stories!
I started calling jurors. I went through the list one-by-one. One hung up on me while others weren't home or didn't answer. I had to give it a try. I worked on this for several hours to no avail. Finally, after three hours or so my phone rang. It was Matt Schmudlach returning my call.
We met Matt in Oshkosh. Our first question: What did he think of the case? Matt said that he thought that it was interesting and that the case could have gone either way. However, when it came down to it, he said there wasn't any physical evidence to support. Matt believes if he and the other jurors had heard evidence of tire tracks in then gravel shoulder, the verdicts would have been different. (You may recall, Judge McGinnis suppressed tire track evidence before the trial. The State wanted to present evidence of tire tracks in the gravel, but Judge McGinnis said the tracks were unreliable and could not be linked to Ashauer's SUV, so the jury would not hear about the tracks). He also said
Matt also said he believed the jury would have convicted had the lighting conditions been different that night. He also believed had the crash happened in daylight, the verdicts would have come back guilty. I asked Matt what took so long? He said most of the jurors had decided Ashauer was not guilty fairly quickly while a couple remained undecided. Matt said much of the nine hours the jury spent deliberating was spent discussing the charges and the legal jargon in the jury instructions. They wanted to be sure they got it right. Matt also said emotion about Tiffany Pohl and her injuries was kept out of the deliberations.
I aksed Matt whether he believed he would have struck Tiffany and Kayla the night of the crash. He replied, "with the evidence presented, yes." Matt said he believed Ashauer was intoxicated, but it might not have been the most significant factor in the crash. He believes everything from the glare from Catherine Schmidt's car, to Tiffany and Kayla's dark clothing and the overall lighting conditions contributed to the crash.
