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Hung jury causes mistrial in CEO child-porn case

ROBERT ALLENsummit daily news
Dennis Flint
ALL |

Editor’s Note: Child pornography charges were eventually dismissed.

BRECKENRIDGE – A hung jury caused the mistrial of the case against Dennis Flint, 55, a former local CEO accused of two felony counts of child-pornography possession. “It could have been done better on both sides,” juror Ashley Connally, 26, of Silverthorne said of the trial. “Both could’ve proved their point.”Several jurors said there weren’t enough facts from either the defense or prosecution to draw a conclusion after the weeklong trial. The jury included seven women and five men. Deliberation began Tuesday at 3:22 p.m., and by Wednesday afternoon the jury still had no verdict. Chief District Judge Terry Ruckriegle said that by then it was no longer appropriate to continue. “The system is based upon people, and the process is more important than the timeliness,” Ruckriegle said. Ruckriegle has announced his retirement effective Aug. 31, and it is likely another judge will preside over the retrial scheduled for Oct. 18-22.District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said that while his office might consider a plea bargain, cases with this much at stake are more likely to go back for another trial. “It’s a tough case,” he said. “These jurors took (it) very seriously, and we appreciate that.”Each of the two charges against Flint carries a penalty of two to six years in prison and a fine of $2,000 to $5,000. Flint said Wednesday evening that he is grateful for his defense team, which includes public defender Dana Christiansen. “I am disappointed, but I still believe in the system,” Flint said of the trial. “I am humbled by the hundreds of well-wishers, both in and out of the courtroom.” After they were excused Wednesday, jurors shared differing thoughts on the challenging work that demanded many hours of their time from June 21-29. “It was kind of a pain in the ass,” said juror Luke Moses, 19. Debra Michaud, 50, of Breckenridge served as the jury forewoman.”It was an amazing experience,” she said, adding that the cause for deadlock was “the whole case lacked detail on both sides.”Jurors declined to share their personal leanings on Flint’s guilt or innocence with the Summit Daily. “It was our opinion that mattered,” Michaud said. The case involves information found on computer hard drives the FBI acquired from the Flint family home in 2006. The computer equipment was taken after investigators received a tip from Flint’s ex-wife Dawn, who installed hidden software that recorded screenshots. The defense used witness testimonies to bring Dawn Flint’s credibility into question while the prosecution used evidence from the digital recordings in its effort to identify Dennis Flint as the person behind the computer. Dennis Flint is accused of violating bond conditions on this case by living with two young sons of a woman he was dating on the Front Range. A hearing regarding that charge was rescheduled to July 12 at 1 p.m. A misdemeanor trial of Dennis Flint, regarding charges filed in December 2008, is to begin on Wednesday. That case involves allegations of child abuse and third-degree assault against his daughter.Flint was CEO of High Country Health Care until March 2009, when he was arrested and charged with the two felonies. He is a Summit High School alumnus who graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1977 before serving as a pilot in the Air Force. He has no previous felony convictions. SDN reporter Robert Allen can be contacted at (970) 668-4628 or rallen@summitdaily.com.For more information:https://www.summitdaily.com/article/20100629/NEWS/100629771/1078&ParentProfile=1055


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