JURY REACHES VERDICTS IN ARYAN BROTHERHOOD TRIAL

By Dan Whitcomb Fri Jul 28, 1:43 PM ET

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A U.S. jury reached verdicts on Friday in the racketeering trial of four leaders of the Aryan Brotherhood, a case that represents the first salvo in a bid by prosecutors to break the notorious prison gang.

Prosecutors said the verdicts would be read at 1:30 p.m. PDT (4:30 p.m. EDT) in the case against Aryan Brotherhood chief Barry "The Baron" Mills, his top lieutenant Tyler "The Hulk" Bingham, Christopher Gibson and Edgar "Snail" Hevle.

Mills and Bingham could face the death penalty if found guilty of ordering or committing murders as part of the racketeering conspiracy. Gibson and Hevle could be sentenced to life in prison.

Prosecutors say the men spent a quarter century trying to control life behind bars through violence and intimidation. The U.S. District Court indictment details a series of murders or attempted murders by the prison gang.

Defense lawyers argued during the four-month trial, carried out under heavy security in Santa Ana, that their clients had merely banded together to survive amid violent racial warfare in maximum security U.S. prisons.

Defense attorneys also accused the government of basing its case on "a parade of perjurers" who cooperated in exchange for cash payments and promises of parole.

Witnesses testified at the trial that the Aryan Brotherhood rose to prominence among prison gangs by being particularly ruthless, often directing murders and assaults by notes written in code or with invisible ink made with fruit juice or urine.

Prosecutors say convicted Mafia boss John Gotti once hired the brotherhood, which was also known as "the Brand," to kill a man who had fought him in a prison yard.

Prosecutors may ultimately seek the death penalty against 16 members of the Aryan Brotherhood in a sweeping case that they say ranks as one of the largest death penalty prosecutions in U.S. history.

Forty people were originally charged in the case in 2002. Since then, 19 have struck plea bargains and another has died. Trials are pending for the rest.