Mass. Jury Begins Deliberations In Kerrigan Trial

The jury considering manslaughter charges against the brother of Olympic figure skater Nancy Kerrigan went home for the day without a verdict Monday.

Mark Kerrigan is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the 2010 death of his 70-year-old father, Daniel Kerrigan.

In closing statements Monday morning, defense lawyer Janice Bassil argued that Daniel Kerrigan's preexisiing heart problems were the cause of his death.

"Other family members had noticed that he seemed to be failing," Bassil said. "The neighbors said he had slowed down. Jean Bergeron said his complexion looked gray that night."

But Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Keeley argued that Kerrigan would not have died if not for a fight with his son, Mark.

"It took this defendant, an angry, mean, nasty, drunk son of his to take Dan Kerrigan down, to end his life," Keeley said.

Keeley told the jury that Mark Kerrigan caused his father's death after he grabbed his father around the neck, breaking cartilage in his larynx and triggering heart failure.

With reporting from the WBUR Newsroom and The Associated Press