Retired Hayward police sergeant convicted of 9 felonies at highly contentious grand theft trial [View all]
HAYWARD — At a highly contentious trial in which jurors saw only a portion of the courtroom drama, retired Hayward police Sgt. Michael Beal was convicted Wednesday of nine counts of felony grand theft for cheating a mentally ill former police confidential informant out of up to $500,000.
Beal, 57, was taken into custody on Wednesday morning after the guilty verdicts were returned. He had been released from jail on his own recognizance during the trial by Judge Thomas Rogers, which is highly unusual in a felony case, despite having $420,000 bail. He faces up to eight years in state prison at his sentencing scheduled for March 29. He already served 19 months in jail while awaiting trial.
The jury heard more than two months of evidence and deliberated for almost three weeks, including over a week with a replacement juror, before finding Beal guilty as charged.
“The length of their deliberations showed there was ample reasonable doubt,” said Beal’s attorney, Austin Thompson. “I’m disappointed, but I think the appeals court will not have a similar delay in overturning the verdicts.”
Read more: http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/03/01/verdict-returns-at-former-hayward-officers-bizarre-grand-theft-trial/
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