After a four month trial and over 10 days of deliberations, the jury in the Etan Patz trial have told a judge today that they are deadlocked on whether suspect Pedro Hernandez is indeed responsible for abducting and killing the 6-year-old boy in 1979. "We the jury, after 10 days of deliberations, want to let the court know that we are unable to reach a unanimous decision," the note, which was passed to Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley, read.

"Seeing you work...I just really believe that we have no reason to believe that some other jury is going to be able to resolve this case," Judge Wiley told the jury as he instructed them to keep deliberating, the AP reports. Defense attorney Harvey Fishbein's request for a mistrial was rejected, and the jury was sent home early; they will re-hear the closing summations again tomorrow.

Sources tell DNAInfo that although they could not say exactly how the panel was split, the jury is leaning toward an acquittal. Manhattan DA spokesperson Joan Vollero said: "This is a conscientious and hard-working jury and we have every faith that, under the judge's guidance, they can continue to work together to reach a just verdict."

Herenandez, 53, confessed two years ago to choking Patz to death in 1979, though a lawyer for Hernandez argued that his client's diagnoses of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder nullified the confession. Ultimately, the judge determined he was of sufficiently sound mind to exercise his right to remain silent.

Patz's body was never found, and there was no physical evidence recovered from the alleged crime scene; the prosecution argued that despite this, Hernandez's confessions rang true, while the defense argued the confession was pure fiction.