Selection slowed by pretrial publicity
BY SUSAN LATHAM CARR
STAR-BANNER
OCALA — After four days of questioning, Circuit Judge Brian D. Lambert late Friday afternoon swore in a jury of eight women and four men who will decide the fate of Renaldo Devon McGirth, 19, and Jarrord Marqui Roberts, 21, two Marion County men accused of murder.
But jury selection is not over yet. Questioning will resume Monday in order to seat two alternate jurors.
All of the jurors, except for one young black man, are white; the defendants are black. If found guilty, they face the death penalty.
McGirth and Roberts are accused of the July 2006 murder of Diana Miller and the shooting of her husband, James, after a home robbery in the Villages that ended in a high-speed chase and the release of the couple's kidnapped daughter, Sheila.
If alternates are selected on Monday, opening statements could begin on Tuesday. The trial is expected to last two weeks.
Jury selection has been slowed by pretrial publicity as well as the dismissal of Thursday's panel of 22 prospective jurors, after a question directed to one of the panelists by the judge led to the disclosure that McGirth had been involved with the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Because all the panelists heard the question and answer, defense attorneys asked that the entire panel be stricken, and the judge agreed.
On Friday, a number of jurors said they had prior knowledge about the case, and some expressed concern about perhaps having to recommend a death sentence, or having to look at graphic photographs.
Before the jury was sworn, Michael Gourley, one of Roberts' defense attorneys, pointed out that during the entire four days of questioning, there was a total of four black people in the jury pool from which to choose.
"He has used preemptories on three of those African Americans," Gourley said about State Attorney Brad King.
McGirth and Roberts each had 10 pre-emptory strikes and King had 20. The judge gave McGirth an additional pre-emptory and denied any additional strikes to Roberts.
The preemptory strikes allow either the state or the defendants to remove people without cause from the jury pool.
During questioning, one of the black men struck by King had expressed concern about looking at graphic photos. Another was the man who said he knew McGirth from the juvenile justice system.
The other black prospective juror was a woman who said she had concerns about the death penalty. When the process was explained to her, she said she could follow the law, but King asked that she be struck.
When asked what she thought of the jury's composition, Michelle McGirth, mother of the defendant, said she had no comment. Roberts' grandmother also had no comment.
Henry Ferro, Roberts' co-counsel, said the matter of race was placed into the record to preserve it for appellate court consideration.
King stands by his decisions.
"I did what I thought was appropriate to represent the state of Florida and Mr. Miller and I think I fully complied with Florida law," he said. King did not use 11 of the 20 strikes he had.
Assistant State Attorney Anthony Tatti, who is working with King on the case, supported King's decisions.
"We used some strikes for white females and white males," Tatti said. "Color is not an issue as far as I am concerned. The issue is the qualifications of the jury."
Susan Latham Carr may be reached at 352-867-4156 or susan.carr@starbanner.com.
BY SUSAN LATHAM CARR
STAR-BANNER
OCALA — After four days of questioning, Circuit Judge Brian D. Lambert late Friday afternoon swore in a jury of eight women and four men who will decide the fate of Renaldo Devon McGirth, 19, and Jarrord Marqui Roberts, 21, two Marion County men accused of murder.
But jury selection is not over yet. Questioning will resume Monday in order to seat two alternate jurors.
All of the jurors, except for one young black man, are white; the defendants are black. If found guilty, they face the death penalty.
McGirth and Roberts are accused of the July 2006 murder of Diana Miller and the shooting of her husband, James, after a home robbery in the Villages that ended in a high-speed chase and the release of the couple's kidnapped daughter, Sheila.
If alternates are selected on Monday, opening statements could begin on Tuesday. The trial is expected to last two weeks.
Jury selection has been slowed by pretrial publicity as well as the dismissal of Thursday's panel of 22 prospective jurors, after a question directed to one of the panelists by the judge led to the disclosure that McGirth had been involved with the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Because all the panelists heard the question and answer, defense attorneys asked that the entire panel be stricken, and the judge agreed.
On Friday, a number of jurors said they had prior knowledge about the case, and some expressed concern about perhaps having to recommend a death sentence, or having to look at graphic photographs.
Before the jury was sworn, Michael Gourley, one of Roberts' defense attorneys, pointed out that during the entire four days of questioning, there was a total of four black people in the jury pool from which to choose.
"He has used preemptories on three of those African Americans," Gourley said about State Attorney Brad King.
McGirth and Roberts each had 10 pre-emptory strikes and King had 20. The judge gave McGirth an additional pre-emptory and denied any additional strikes to Roberts.
The preemptory strikes allow either the state or the defendants to remove people without cause from the jury pool.
During questioning, one of the black men struck by King had expressed concern about looking at graphic photos. Another was the man who said he knew McGirth from the juvenile justice system.
The other black prospective juror was a woman who said she had concerns about the death penalty. When the process was explained to her, she said she could follow the law, but King asked that she be struck.
When asked what she thought of the jury's composition, Michelle McGirth, mother of the defendant, said she had no comment. Roberts' grandmother also had no comment.
Henry Ferro, Roberts' co-counsel, said the matter of race was placed into the record to preserve it for appellate court consideration.
King stands by his decisions.
"I did what I thought was appropriate to represent the state of Florida and Mr. Miller and I think I fully complied with Florida law," he said. King did not use 11 of the 20 strikes he had.
Assistant State Attorney Anthony Tatti, who is working with King on the case, supported King's decisions.
"We used some strikes for white females and white males," Tatti said. "Color is not an issue as far as I am concerned. The issue is the qualifications of the jury."
Susan Latham Carr may be reached at 352-867-4156 or susan.carr@starbanner.com.
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