FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- One of the jurors who convicted Bob Leonard, Jr., on 51 felony counts said it was a "very difficult" decision, but that he's confident the jury made the right call.
MORE | Bob Leonard, Jr., convicted on 51 counts in Richmond Hill Explosion trial
In a rare post-trial speech, juror Casey Schafer said the evidence against Leonard about his role in the Richmond Hill Explosion was just too overwhelming.
"He had a lot of damning evidence," Shafer said. "It was really, like nine key factors that we narrowed it down to and four really stuck."
Shafer said the other ones could be described as layers of a cake.
"If you got all nine layers, it was a giant cake," he said. "It was a wedding cake. We basically knew we needed the cake in order to convict."
Shafer said the DNA evidence on the door and the van was a key piece of evidence.
He also said the jurors would've liked to hear from Leonard, who didn't testify.
Shafer said he came away from the jury believing in the judicial process.
"It was amazing to see how people work together with different ideas, like the defense vs. the prosecution," he said. "It was amazing to see this system in action to make that choice. Overall, we felt it was important for the people that were affected by this to understand why we came to our conclusions."
WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH SCHAFER IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE.
Leonard's conviction included dozens of counts of arson and four counts of murder – the latter making him eligible to receive life without parole.
Allen County Superior Court Judge Frances Gull will decide Leonard's fate at his sentencing hearing, scheduled for March 18 at 1 p.m.
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RELATED LINKS | Richmond Hill Special Section | Mark Ray Leonard convicted on all counts
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