ALPENA — An Alpena man accused of attempted murder shouldn’t have to face trial a second time, the man’s lawyer’s told the Michigan Court of Appeals on Thursday.

In July, a jury said it couldn’t reach a verdict in the trial of Kevin Baughan, 33, accused of pouring gasoline in an Alpena home and on a woman and threatening to ignite it.

After jurors had deliberated for about seven hours, Judge Ed Black in the 26th Circuit Court dismissed them and declared a mistrial, telling attorneys that notes from the jurors made it clear they would not reach a consensus.

That move was premature, said Baughan’s attorneys, who on Thursday filed paperwork asking the appeals court to dismiss all charges against Baughan.

A second trial for Baughan was scheduled to begin next week, but Black on Wednesday agreed to postpone it to give Baughan’s attorneys time to file the appeal.

The appeals court will consider whether it will hear the Alpena case.

During the first trial, the jury started their deliberation around 4 p.m. on a Friday.

At 9 p.m. that evening, when they couldn’t agree on a verdict on any of the 10 charges against Baughan, Black sent them home for the weekend, to resume deliberation the following week.

The following Monday was a motion day for the court, meaning dozens of cases were already scheduled to be heard by the judge.

A separate jury trial was scheduled to begin in the courtroom that Tuesday, with a judge from another county presiding.

Returning from their weekend break, jurors deliberated in the jury room, periodically sending notes to Black to advise him of their status while Black heard cases as scheduled in the courtroom.

Mid-morning, Black told attorneys he believed the jury could not reach a decision based on their notes and dismissed jurors, declaring a mistrial.

Later, some jurors told attorneys they got stuck because one juror refused to consider a guilty verdict in any of the charges because the juror had a relative with the same mental illness that had been mentioned as a factor in the case, according to Baughan’s appeal.

The juror’s hand-written notes, included in the appeal paperwork but not shown to attorneys until after the trial, told Black about the juror who refused to apply the law.

Black should have shared those notes with the attorneys and let them have a voice in what came next, defense attorney Julie Miller said in the appeal.

At a hearing this week, Black stood by his decision to let the jury go but OKed a delay in the second trial to let defense attorneys try their argument with the appeals court.

Before agreeing to the delay, Black asked Baughan if he understood that the delay meant more time in jail.

Baughan has been held at the Alpena County Jail for nearly two years, since his arrest in December 2020. After the trial, Black set a bond of $125,000, but Baughan has not been able to pay to be released.

Since the trial, Alpena County Prosecutor Cynthia Muszynski has extended multiple plea offers to Baughan. The most recent, which Baughan has 30 days to accept, would set the potential sentencing upper limit at 34 months.

A person found guilty of the most serious charge against Baughan could be sentenced to life in prison.

Julie Riddle can be reached at 989-358-5693, jriddle@thealpenanews.com or on Twitter @jriddleX.