A federal jury in the trial of a friend of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev completed its first full day of deliberations without reaching a verdict on whether the friend lied to the FBI, Reuters reported.
Cambridge resident Robel Phillipos is charged with lying to the FBI about the deadly bombing, according to Reuters. Prosecutors say he lied about being in Tsarnaev's dorm room three days after the bombing, when two other friends removed a backpack containing fireworks and other potential evidence.
The jury is deliberating on whether Phillipos was too high on marijuana to have intentionally lied to investigators about his role in the aftermath of the 2013 attack, Reuters reported.
Phillipos defense attorney Derege Demissie said his client had smoked marijuana for 12 to 16 hours straight that day and could not remember events the FBI had questioned him about, according to Reuters.
"The funny thing about memory is, we can't really tell people what we don't remember," Demissie said.
The items were removed hours after the FBI released photos of Tsarnaev and his brother as suspects, but Phillipos says he couldn't clearly remember what he did, Reuters reported.
The jury began deliberating Tuesday afternoon and continued Wednesday, and is expected to resume Thursday, according to Reuters. Phillipos faces up to 16 years in prison on two counts of lying to investigators if found guilty.
An expert on marijuana abuse testified earlier in the trial that the drug could have impaired Phillipos' cognitive abilities and memory, Reuters reported.
Former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis, a friend of Phillipos' family, also testified that the student was "so confused he didn't know what he had said" to the FBI, according to Reuters.
Three people were killed and more than 260 were injured when two bombs exploded at the marathon finish line on April 15, 2013, Reuters reported. Tsarnaev has pleaded not guilty.
