UPDATE: Jury dismissed for the evening in Columbia arson trial

UPDATE, 9:15 p.m.: The judge has sent the jury home for the night.

At about 8:45 p.m., the jury sent the judge a note. ABC 17 News asked what the note said, but attorneys said they couldn’t say.

But it did cause the judge to consider sending them home so they could come back Thursday for a fresh start.

Deliberations will pick back up again Thursday at 9 a.m.

UPDATE: The jury started deliberating at 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

ORIGINAL: The trial for a Columbia man accused of being paid to set a home on fire back in December 2014 entered its second day in the Boone County Courthouse.

James Hall, 42, went to trial back in February 2018 for first-degree arson, but according to court records, the jury was unable to reach a verdict.

Hall was allegedly paid by his boss at the time, Mehrdad Fotoohigiam, 64, of Columbia to burn down his neighbor’s home, while she was still inside.

Prosecutors said James Hall is guilty of setting a mobile home on fire with a victim inside, leaving the subject with severe trauma and second degree burns.

Hall’s attorney has maintained that his client is not guilty.

Today, several witnesses have taken the stand and give their testimonies, including a roommate of Hall’s, who claims he was involved in setting fire to the victim’s home.

A past colleague of Hall also took the stand today and said that both him and Hall were asked by their boss, Fotoohigiam, to set fire to the home for money, but claims Hall wanted to do it.

The defense lawyer explained to the jury that many of the witnesses, including Hall’s past roommate and colleague, came to testify today in efforts to dismiss their past felonies.

The trial continues and is expected to last through tomorrow.