Ventura defamation jury deadlocked; judge urges 'one more shot'

Matt Sepic
St. Paul, Minn.

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Jesse Ventura
Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura, right, made his way back into Warren E. Burger Federal Building during the first day of jury selection in a defamation lawsuit, Tuesday, July 8, 2014 in St. Paul, Minn.
Elizabeth Flores/Star Tribune via AP

The jury in the Jesse Ventura defamation suit sent a note to court Monday morning saying it could not reach a verdict.

U.S. District Judge Richard Kyle told jurors to "take one more shot" at coming to a consensus.

The jury will begin a sixth day of deliberations Tuesday.

Ventura is suing the estate of former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle. The ex-Minnesota governor claims Kyle defamed him by making up a story about a 2006 bar fight that appears in Kyle's book, "American Sniper."

In urging them to keep deliberating, Judge Kyle (no relation to Chris Kyle) praised the panel as "about as conscientious a jury as I've seen in 22 years."

If there is a mistrial because of a hung jury, it would be up to Ventura whether to pursue a second trial.

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