LITTLE ROCK, AR — There was a definite step forward in the jury selection process in the retrial for a former Little Rock police officer charged with manslaughter for the death of a 15-year-old robbery suspect.
A portion of the jury box has officially been seated. The state and the defense had 12 potential jury members in the box, but about 10 minutes before they let out for the day, the team of attorneys used their allotted strikes, leaving six open seats.
On Wednesday, the courtroom finally moved passed the laborious topic of media coverage on the case influencing potential jurors dismissing many in the meantime.
Next, they looked to make sure they seated 12 people who they knew would decide the case based on the facts and not on any preconceptions they have coming into the courtroom based on personal history.
“That’s what we’re fighting,” said Bill James, Hastings’ defense attorney. “We’re fighting people that want to get on the jury, people that will say anything they can to get on the jury. We have to weed those people out and determine how we can get them off either for cause or strike them.”
The court whittled down a jury pool of around 40 to 12, and now six.
And when the rest of the jury is filled, those 12 will have the task of deciding on a verdict for a man charged with the wrongful death of a 15-year-old robbery suspect.
The remaining jury seats will be filled Thursday morning with six more potential jurors.
If you would like to follow Josh Berry’s stories, ‘Like’ his Facebook page.
A portion of the jury box has officially been seated. The state and the defense had 12 potential jury members in the box, but about 10 minutes before they let out for the day, the team of attorneys used their allotted strikes, leaving six open seats.
On Wednesday, the courtroom finally moved passed the laborious topic of media coverage on the case influencing potential jurors dismissing many in the meantime.
Next, they looked to make sure they seated 12 people who they knew would decide the case based on the facts and not on any preconceptions they have coming into the courtroom based on personal history.
“That’s what we’re fighting,” said Bill James, Hastings’ defense attorney. “We’re fighting people that want to get on the jury, people that will say anything they can to get on the jury. We have to weed those people out and determine how we can get them off either for cause or strike them.”
The court whittled down a jury pool of around 40 to 12, and now six.
And when the rest of the jury is filled, those 12 will have the task of deciding on a verdict for a man charged with the wrongful death of a 15-year-old robbery suspect.
The remaining jury seats will be filled Thursday morning with six more potential jurors.
If you would like to follow Josh Berry’s stories, ‘Like’ his Facebook page.
