If the choice had been so clear-cut, I would think that it would have been made.

It's admittedly speculation on my part; there could be any number of reasons why there had been no final decision. [He shrugs, almost lazily. He leaves it unsaid that if they want to know, they can ask; L is here, after all. Ultimately, though, the reason doesn't much matter to Near. The result was the same.]