California Experts Weigh In On John Edwards' Not Guilty Verdict & Mistrial
(CBS News / CNN) -- After nine days of deliberation over a case that proved at times both bizarre and sordid, a federal jury in North Carolina on Thursday found former Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards not guilty on one of six charges of campaign finance corruption. A mistrial was declared on the other five counts.
The prosecution must now decide whether to retry the remaining five charges. But after the lengthy, controversial, and high-profile trial, Stan Goldman, a law professor and criminal law expert at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles wonders "if it would make any sense to do it again."
"This is not a murder case. This is not kidnapping. This is a close call on a political financing case where experts in the area seem to be highly divided on whether a rule was violated," Goldman said. "It strikes me as an abuse of discretion to retry a case like this unless a jury was hung 11-1 or 10-2" on one more more of the counts.
Edwards was indicted last year on the six counts alleging his complicity in a payment scheme to cover up an extramarital affair and its resulting pregnancy while he was running for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.
The reputation of Elizabeth Edwards, who separated from John Edwards in 2010 after 32 years of marriage and died of cancer in 2010, seemed to be on trial at times. A full participant in her husband's presidential campaign, she could be tough and blunt with campaign staffers. After reports surfaced of the affair, a witness testified, Elizabeth Edwards confronted her husband and ripped off her blouse to show her mastectomy scars.
What does the future hold? Experts note that politicians like Edwards seem to have no trouble attracting new girlfriends after public accusations of cheating.
It's always possible that people who have cheated in the past will not cheat in the future. But relationship experts say past behavior is a better predictor of the future than any cheater's promises.
"Denial can be really powerful in new relationships," said divorce recovery expert Andra Brosh, co-founder of Divorce Detox in Santa Monica. "People use it as a defense against knowing the truth. They don't look at all the facts, and ultimately, that ends up being a problem."
After walked out of the courtroom Thursday as a free man, the former North Carolina senator, two-time presidential candidate and 2004 Democratic vice presidential nominee said he had done an "awful, awful lot that was wrong," and delivered a conciliatory speech about personal responsibility.
Edwards expressed hope that he could dedicate his future to raising his children and helping those in need.
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