x
Breaking News
More () »

Tex McIver trial jurors explain tipping point that led them to a guilty verdict

The verdict was virtually unpredictable up until the jury finally walked out to provide it. Now, 11Alive is working to understand why a jury found Atlanta attorney Tex McIver guilty of felony murder.

It was a circumstantial case from the very beginning pitting lawyers in the legal community against each other. It was ultimately the crime scene that was perhaps the most pivotal point in the final decision.

11Alive was in the Fulton County Sheriff's Office Sally Port as, one-by-one, jurors got the opportunity to climb inside the SUV with the gun used to kill Diane McIver. There, they re-enacted the crime.

The jurors who talked to us said Tex McIver's story just didn't make sense.

"We were able to take the gun," one juror said. "We were able to go to the car and we came up with, you shot your wife in the back."

The prosecutor said he knew when the jurors asked to go back and see the car with the gun, they were going to convict.

PHOTOS | Tex McIver Murder Trial Evidence

"It's powerful. You were able to see how the gun lined up with that dowel rod - the trajectory rod," state attorney Clint Rutger said. "He was asleep? I don't think so, they saw through that."

Jurors said that was a turning point. Before then, the jury was sharply divided. One juror told 11Alive all of them wanted to convict Tex McIver of the highest charge - malice murder - but half of them didn't think they had enough evidence to do it.

MORE | What's the difference between malice murder and felony murder?

"I was in both camps flip-flopping on both sides," the juror said. "I wanted to find him guilty, but couldn't."

McIver is scheduled for sentencing on May 23. The death penalty is currently not on the table.

'It wasn't accidental.' Jurors explain why they found Tex McIver guilty

Tex McIver found guilty of felony murder in wife Diane's death

Before You Leave, Check This Out