A Douglas County jury Wednesday failed to reach a verdict in the trial of Koko Sessou on the charge of attempted assault on a police officer. The judge then declared a mistrial on that count.

The jury deliberated for approximately 15 hours before notifying the judge they had acquitted Sessou on the second attempted assault charge involving a bar employee, but couldn't reach a decision on whether or not Sessou tried to run over an off-duty officer.

They sent Judge Thomas Otepka a letter which in part read, "We as a jury are locked on count one. After two days of intense deliberation and five days of testimony we are at a point where tempers and emotions are rising in the jury room."

The jury foreman called it a disagreement on the perception of the facts while other jurors called it a very difficult time.

"I happened to be one of those, I got a little bit mad about people continuing to push me to do what I felt I could not do and I wasn't going to change a vote," said juror Pat McGill. "Intent was the biggest thing by far, how do you know intent?"

Omaha Police Officer Dave Brumagen shot Sessou in a parking lot confrontation at Rockbrook Village in April 2006.

Off-duty officers were working as security guards that night, trying to clear the parking lot and police say Sessou tried to run Brumagen down with his car. Sessou claims that he left when officers told him to, but he headed out the wrong way.

Officer Brumagen says as the vehicle came at him, he fired six shots into Sessou's car. Two of those shots struck Sessou.

Brumagen testified that he had to pivot out of the way of the oncoming car and the vehicle missed him by just six inches.

After learning of the hung jury, Sessou is eager to get back to a normal life. "Was going back to school this quarter when I find out my trial date was set, so I put that on hold for now, but I might be going back to school after all this, hopefully in summer."

Despite the smiles on the defense team, a mistrial is not a full victory. "The unfortunate thing about not retrying it is that I've got a client who is not guilty, but who will not be exonerated," said defense attorney James Martin Davis.

Davis tried to discredit Brumagen, calling into question his reason for approaching Sessou, the estimated speed of the car and the threat level Brumagen felt.

Davis said the picture Brumagen painted of Sessou was inaccurate. "He never swerved or he never tried to run down either of these officers."

The jury split 9-3 on the attempted assault charge involving the officer. Davis said the vote favored acquittal.

It will be up to prosecutors to decide if they will seek to try Sessou again for the charge of attempting to assault the officer.