PAWNEE CITY — Jurors who heard evidence about the killing of 75-year-old farmer Kenneth Albers took their seats for the final time Wednesday in Pawnee County District Court.

District Judge Daniel Bryan asked the nine women and three men, “If you were to continue deliberations, do you feel there is a reasonable probability you might arrive at a verdict?”

Each juror said, “No.”

Deadlocked.

The judge declared a mistrial and ordered the defendant held without bond. Patrick W. Schroeder, 29, of DuBois, who confessed to the April 14 bludgeoning of Albers, will be tried again starting June 11 in a neighboring county.

After meeting privately with the judge and trial attorneys for about 30 minutes, the jurors filed out of the courtroom. Jason Albers of Lincoln, the youngest son of the victim, was the first person they saw.

Some shook his hand and apologized, saying it was 11-1 in favor of a conviction. One juror said, “We tried.” Another cried as she gave him a hug.

Then the last juror stepped up to Albers and offered his hand.

“Jason, I’m sorry, I was the one.”

Edward Conradt said he had reasonable doubt.

Albers took Conradt’s hand and held it for what seemed like a long time. In a terse but controlled voice, he started asking questions.

“How did my dad’s blood get in Schroeder’s basement?”

“I don’t know,” Conradt responded.

Did he read the judge’s written instructions, specifically the part where it says finding guilt beyond a reasonable doubt does not mean beyond all possible doubt? Did he really think the defendant didn’t commit the crime?

“If I’m wrong, I’m confident he’ll be convicted,” Conradt said as he finally walked away.

Later, outside the courthouse,  Conradt said the prosecution couldn’t overcome his doubt. The trail of Albers’ blood, from the farmer’s house to the edge of the well where his body was found to the nightstick discovered in Schroeder’s yard, couldn’t convince him. Nor could the videotaped confession.

“I had reasonable doubt that it was given freely and voluntarily,” said the 55-year-old auditor who works in Lincoln. “I thought it was more of an interrogation than a confession. I heard a lot of questions from the state on that video.”

Sticking to his belief the prosecution didn’t prove Schroeder guilty was the hardest thing he’s ever done, Conradt added.

The family of Kenneth Albers found nothing admirable about Conradt’s stand.

Albers’ wife, Margaret, who lived separately from her husband during the last years of his life, cried after the judge declared the mistrial.

His adult children, one from Lincoln, one from California and two from Texas, said their lives will remain on hold as they await justice.

“I want everybody to know my dad was a great guy and he didn’t deserve this,” said Angie Biesterfeld, one of Albers’ two daughters.

Across the street, as Conradt spoke to reporters, Jason Albers accused him of wanting 15 minutes of fame. He emotionally accused the reporters of giving it to him.

The victim’s son said people in Pawnee City are upset. He said he would pray for Conradt.

The jury deliberated for about 24 hours over three days. They were allowed to go home over the weekend and at night.

Juror Karen Harlow said that about two hours into deliberations, the jurors took a vote: 10-2 to convict. But the law requires juries to reach unanimous verdicts in criminal cases.

Later, the vote became 11-1. It never changed.

Harlow said she felt the prosecution’s case was strong. The videotaped confession provided the linchpin.

“I still have faith in (the legal system),” she said. “I’m fairly certain justice will be done.”

Schroeder, an unemployed laborer at the time of the killing, is married and has a daughter and three stepchildren. His wife, Phyllis, called the case a tragedy and she said having to go into court every day and face the Albers family was one of the hardest things she’s had to do.

“I pray to God for them every day,” she said. “I feel for their loss, but I also feel for my loss.”

As for her husband, she said, “I don’t believe in my heart he did it. I believe he was there and I believe he knows what happened.”

Schroeder was granted a change in venue for the second trial, which will be held at the Richardson County Courthouse in Falls City.

Because prosecutors are not seeking the death penalty, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted.

By the time the second trial begins, more than a year will have passed since Albers’ death.

In recorded interviews with authorities, Schroeder said that on April 10, 2006, he stole Albers’ checkbook and forged a check for $1,357 on the account. Assuming the farmer would report the forgery to authorities, Schroeder said he decided to rob Albers a few days later, and he added, “I had it in my head I was going to kill him.”

He told Nebraska State Patrol investigators he carried a nightstick to the home of Albers on the morning of April 14. It was widely known that Albers kept large amounts of cash at his residence, where he lived alone.

Schroeder, who once worked for the farmer, told authorities he repeatedly struck Albers with the nightstick and dumped his body in an abandoned well southwest of Pawnee City. Testimony revealed close to $7,000 was taken.

In his statements, Schroeder told investigators where to find the money, the nightstick and the bloodstained shoes and jeans he wore during the killing.

Assistant Attorneys General Michael Guinan and Doug Warner, who prosecuted the case, showed the jury Miranda rights forms Schroeder signed on the days of the recorded interviews. At the end of the taped interview, an investigator asked Schroeder if he answered questions freely and voluntarily and Schroeder replied that he had.

The murder charge against Schroeder was not his first legal trouble.

He was first sentenced to prison for escape in March 1993 as a 15-year-old, but a judge vacated the sentence a month later. By October 1993, he was back in prison on the same charges and served 4½ years. In 2000, he received another prison sentence for theft and was released three years later.

Rob Kortus, an attorney with the Commission on Public Advocacy who represented Schroeder, wasn’t claiming victory over the mistrial.

But he thanked the jury for their service.

“It took courage to stick by their convictions in light of all the publicity and discussions that took place before the trial,” he said.

Holley Hatt, spokeswoman for the attorney general’s office, said her thoughts were with the family of the victim.

“We have given them our assurance we will retry the case and do everything we can to ensure that justice is served,” she said.

The case was the first murder trial in Pawnee County in 26 years. The last trial, in 1981, also ended in a hung jury.

Reach Joe Duggan at 473-7239 or jduggan@journalstar.com.