Gotti jury deadlocks in NY Mafia mistrial

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A judge declared a mistrial in the case of suspected Mafia boss John "Junior" Gotti on Friday after deadlocked jurors were unable to reach a verdict for the second time in six months.Prosecutors immediately said they would seek a third trial on racketeering and other charges against Gotti, whose late father was one of New York's most notorious crime bosses.

Judge Shira Scheindlin called the jury's day-and-a-half of deliberations "surprisingly short" but said "the jury has spoken" after it had sent her two notes saying the 12-member panel was hopelessly deadlocked.

A hearing was called for Monday at which a new trial date could be set.

Gotti's defense focused on the claim that he had given up mob life. He hugged his lawyers upon hearing of the mistrial and left the courthouse surrounded by a gaggle of reporters.

"I want to raise my children," he said. "That's all I wanted in life."

A previous trial also resulted in a deadlocked jury, forcing the retrial. The second trial rekindled New York's obsession with the Mafia and Gotti's infamous father, revealing accounts of bloody shootings and secret mob codes.

Gotti, 42, was accused of leading the Gambino crime family, extorting construction companies, loan-sharking and ordering a brutal attack on Curtis Sliwa, the founder of New York's Guardian Angels anti-crime patrol, because of his critical comments about the Gotti family on his radio show.

Sliwa did not believe Gotti had withdrawn from the Mafia, telling reporters, "There's only one way to withdraw from the mob and that's to be at room temperature."