Special to El Rrun-Rrun
A jury of eight women and four men – after deliberating for about 4 hours – declared former City of Brownsville Fire Department Chief Carlos Elizondo not guilty on six counts of computer security breach and that he accessed the Brownsville Fire Department Emergency Reporting System while suspended by the city and without its consent to access the reporting system.The verdict came after less than a day of testimony from five prosecution witnesses including current Chief Jarred Sheldon.
The jury went into deliberations just a little after 10 a.m. and issued their verdict about 4 hours later at 2 p.m with a one-hour and a half break for lunch.
The defense headed by attorney Eddie Lucio did not present and witnesses during the trial.
Elizondo, who was suspended in October of 2017, was indicted last July on 11 counts which were reduced to six. He faces a separate indictment accusing him of theft and misapplication of fiduciary duty over allegations he stole from the firefighters association.
He has also pleaded not guilty to those charges. Those charges are pending.
During his closing argument, Ass. D.A. Arturo Teniente told the jurors that Elizondo accessing the system was not a life-or-death matter, but that as a former fire chief, he personally knew that the system was restricted to only a select number of people. Teneinte emphasized details of charges 3 and 4 which the prosecution views as their strongest.
On the other hand, defense attorney Eddie Lucio tried to minimize his client's acts saying that there was no written policy that specifically stated he was prohibited from accessing the system.
Apparently, the fact that there was no written policy prohibiting city workers on suspension from accessing the computer system swayed the jury to issue their not guilty verdict. It is unclear whether the verdict will mean Elizondo will mean he will get his job back at the department.