UPDATE: Cameron Brown RPV cliff death trial

A mistrial was declared Monday afternoon in the murder trial of a former South Bay man accused of throwing his 4-year-old daughter off a Rancho Palos Verdes cliff six years ago.

The Torrance Superior Court jury informed Judge Mark S. Arnold it was hopelessly deadlocked after seven days of deliberations and could not reach a consensus to convict Cameron Brown .

"I'm just gratified that not only was he not convicted, but it was apparent they rejected this idea it was an intentional act," said Los Angeles lawyer Mark Geragos, who represented Brown . "The clear message was they had rejected the idea this was an intentional killing. ... Basically this was a thorough repudiation of the prosecution's case."

Prosecutors alleged during more than two months of trial that the former airline luggage handler planned to kill his daughter to avoid $1,000 monthly child support payments; Geragos had maintained Lauren Key's death resulted from an accidental plunge into the ocean when his client wasn't looking.

Brown had faced life in prison without possibility of parole if convicted of first-degree murder and the special circumstances of lying in wait and killing for financial gain.

The jury foreman told the judge only two jurors favored a first-degree murder conviction.

Eight favored convicting Brown on second-degree murder, while the other two were convinced Brown had committed manslaughter.

To win a first-degree murder conviction, prosecutors had to convince jurors that Brown had thought about committing murder beforehand.

A second-degree murder conviction rested on the legal theory of implied malice, which means Brown should have known the danger to his daughter's life by hiking atop 120-foot-high Inspiration Point, but consciously disregarded that risk.

For a manslaughter conviction, jurors merely had to be convinced that Brown 's actions were criminally negligent.

Jurors, some of whom were crying, refused to talk to reporters. Several, however, met with Deputy District Attorney Craig Hum after the mistrial was declared.

"There were two jurors on the jury who couldn't accept the fact a father could do this to his 4-year-old daughter," Hum said. "The 10 jurors who voted for murder were clearly convinced by the evidence."

Hum said the jurors he spoke with offered some "useful comments," but said none indicated there were fundamental flaws in the prosecution's case.

Arnold set an Oct. 11 date for a second trial.

Hum said he intends to again seek a first-degree murder conviction with two special circumstances in the second trial.

But Geragos, whose previous clients have included pop singer Michael Jackson and convicted wife-killer Scott Peterson, said he is "hopeful they won't even retry it" and will try to have his client released from custody.

"He's relieved there was no conviction and we're hopeful we can prevail and bring him home," Geragos said, adding he plans to return for a second trial if there is one. "I've never dropped a client on a mistrial and I'm not going to start now. ... The case does not get any better for the prosecution."

The case against Brown was built almost entirely on circumstantial evidence.

Each side presented dueling expert witnesses who, predictably enough, reached differing conclusions that supported each party's version of events.

Jurors reviewed the testimony of both experts during deliberations, but twice indicated -- on Thursday and Friday -- to the judge that they were deadlocked.

Arnold asked jurors Monday if they wanted to hear arguments in the case on the issue of implied malice. Jurors were polled and split 10-2 on whether that would prove helpful in aiding them reaching a verdict. Arnold then declared a mistrial.

Hum said he had his first inkling late last week that jurors might be deadlocked in the complex case.

The prosecution had portrayed the 44-year-old Brown as a "nasty, vindictive and spiteful" man. Brown , Hum argued, saw the daughter conceived in a casual relationship with a woman he met in a bar and came to despise as a threat to his carefree lifestyle of sailing and surfing.

Geragos countered that Brown merely lacked parenting skills and had grown to love his daughter.

Hum said he spoke briefly Monday afternoon to Lauren's mother, Sarah Key-Marer, who had attended portions of the emotional trial.

"Obviously she's very disappointed that the jury wasn't able to reach a verdict and she was hoping to bring this chapter to a close," Hum said.

"It's disappointing when a jury can't reach a verdict in any case and this case in particular was tough because of the heartbreak Sarah had to go through and the length of time it took for the jurors to sit on the case."Chronology

Nov. 8, 2000: Lauren Sarene Key, 4, dies after falling from Rancho Palos Verdes cliff.

Nov. 16, 2003: Cameron Brown is arrested in his daughter's death.

Nov. 17: Brown is charged.

Aug. 14, 2004: Grand jury indicts Brown on murder charges with special circumstances of lying in wait and killing for financial gain.

May 30, 2006: Jury selection begins.

June 15: Trial starts.

July 25: Prosecution rests.

Aug. 1: Defense rests.

Aug 2: Jurors visit the site of Lauren's death.

Aug. 4: Jury deliberation begins.

Aug. 15: Mistrial declared.

Oct. 11: Retrial to start.