Jury Sympathized With Southlake Couple Convicted of Forced Labor, Defense Says, Revealing Gray Areas in Trafficking Cases

Federal jurors struggled with their decision to convict a Southlake couple of forced labor, a defense attorney said, because the young victim seemed happy to them, and the defendants appeared to have "good intentions." A Fort Worth courtroom issued verdicts Thursday evening in the rare North Texas human trafficking trial, during which jurors heard evidence that an African woman performed domestic duties for more than 15 years for the couple without pay or any education. Scott H. Palmer, the defense attorney, said one of the jurors called him Friday morning because he said he could not sleep after voting with the other jurors to convict Mohamed Toure and Denise Cros-Toure of forced labor and alien harboring charges. The defense claimed the defendants treated Djena Diallo like a member of the family. Palmer said the male juror, who he declined to identify, told him he and the other jurors struggled with the fact that the victim was free to come and go from the house and often tagged along for happy family occasions and vacations. "My impression was, they didn't want to find them guilty of anything," Palmer said.   Continue reading...