- 11:25 a.m. Court dismisses testimony of Schapelle's expert witness who said she didn't fit the profile of a drug trafficker. Police get more credibility because they are sworn officers of the law. Dismisses the testimony of the male inmate who testified for Corby about the jailhouse converstation he overheard - because he wouldn't name the baggage handler he said put the drugs in Schapelle's bag. (As it was, the guy got stabbed in his cell when they returned him to prison after his testimony.)
- 11:23 a.m. News blog says Corby is crying now. The Judge was screaming the opinion directly at her.
- 11:19 a.m. Judge is talking about the damage her bringing drugs in caused to the Indonesian people. "Given testimony,"... translator says he's rehashing prosecution's case and now says "Given prosecution's arguments". Sounds over for Schapelle.
- 11:16 a.m. Judge is shouting. "Considering all that..." Feed just went out again, but it sounds like a guilty verdict.
- 11:09 a.m. Translator is back. She says the judge is so worked up she can't understand him. The customs officer's testimony was corrorborated by another witness. That doesn't sound good. The police witness said she said "no, no" when they asked her to open the bag. This is going downhill quick.
- 10:56 a.m. Audio is back. Translator isn't saying anything.
- 10:45 a.m. Judge is recapping testimony of convicted felon who testified for Schapelle about what he heard in his jail cell in Australia about planting drugs. Telgraph recap of verdict so far. SMH Australia has this recap. Translator has lost the feed. Now the feed is back but they are interviewing someone.
- 10:34 a.m. The translator reports the Judge is recounting Schapelle taking the bag through customs and the discovery of marijuana. It sounds like the Judge is reciting her version of what happened. But the audio is so in and out it's hard to tell. He recites her witnesses who said that she had nothing else in the bag but her board and flippers. He recites her denials.
- 10:26 a.m. The translator reports the Judges say she didn't act like a drug smuggler, she had no prior involvement, and the prosecution has brought no witnesses with direct evidence of her involvement. That sounds positive, but the audio keeps going in and out and I am not hearing everything. The live news blogger must not be hearing the translator either since he's doing far more descriptive coverage of the courtroom than he is reporting what the Judge is saying. I have to say, the Australian media is not doing a great job with the live feed coverage and the translator is awful. [We're on the second translator, the first, who was officially translating for Schapelle, had her media feed cut by the Court]
- 10:10 a.m. The live audio feed is very difficult to hear. The Judges are speaking in Indonesian and the translator is struggling to keep up. This is the same translator that Schapelle is listening to. They're still reciting the facts. It's very incomprehensible. And certainly not a word for word translation.
- 9:36 a.m. The judges are on the bench and about to read the 79 page verdict.
- 9:30 a.m. The tv news live blog has begun. They are seated in the courtroom. Schapelle has arrived.
It is now 8:00 am, Friday, May 27, 2005 in Bali. Schapelle Corby awaits her fate for allegedly smuggling 4 kilos of marijuana (9 pounds) in her boogie-board bag while en route to Bali for a vacation. She maintains her innocence
Three judges will decide her fate at 9 a.m., Bali time. The Chief Judge has never acquitted a drug defendant. He will read the judgment, expected to be 80 pages and take 2 1/2 hours. Then he will pronounce her fate. It is widely expected she will be found guilty and sentenced to life in the Indonesian prison where she has been held for the past seven months.
You can listen live to the live translation of the verdict here. Latest videos from the courthouse are here. Our prior coverage is here and here.
Schapelle says the drugs must have been planted. The recent breakup of a large-scale airport baggage handlers' cocaine smuggling ring might support her claim. More:
The day police allege a Sydney drug ring brought almost 10 kilograms of cocaine through Sydney Airport with the help of corrupt baggage handlers is the same day Schapelle Corby flew to Bali from the same airport.
But Indonesian authorites won't consider the arrests, because news of them didn't appear in the media, and were not learned of by the defenese, until after the trial had ended and the evidence was closed.
A network news video timeline of her case from arrest to today is here.
Update: Jeff Seaman for Congress and Swing State Project join the boycott.
