It's a different dynamic. In a civil case, it's about money and the standard is preponderance of the evidence. In a criminal case, it's about getting ONE juror to swing your way. If the facts favor you, then you want smart jurors, who will see what happened.
Civil defense lawyers hate jurors, but criminal defense lawyers love them.
A civil jury typically only requires a 10-2 or a 9-3 vote, so winning one of those is easier than getting 12-0 in a criminal case.
I agree - but if I was one of these young men's parents I would sure want an unequivocal finding and not have to go through life with a split jury vote. I know not guilty is not guilty, but it is not the same as being declared "innocent".
I believe the venue would play a large part in the decision with this case. In Durham county a bench trial might be the best decision. No trial judge likes to have his decisions overturned by a higher court. Therefore he would, theoretically, be more careful in keeping his own biases out of the decision. Outside of Durham county, I believe the accused (read victims) would be as well off with a jury.