((HT: Fox 41/Turner))
Judge Susan Schultz Gibson dismissed eight potential jurors and left a pool of 100 to return Wednesday.
She denied a continuance and changed her mind about banning journalists and the public from the crowded courtroom during jury selection.
Jury selection is slow, in the midst of more arguments about what jurors and the public can see and hear.
Since January, Jason Stinson's ((pictured, thanks Louisville Courier-Journal file))friends raised more than $90,000 from supporters to pay for attorneys Alex Dathorne, Brian Butler and other legal work.
"You stop and think about someone who makes less than $50,000 a year, and they're facing at a six-figure defense bill, that can be intimidating in itself. That's why people end up taking deals," said Rodney Daugherty, Stinson friend.
There are no deals for Stinson, who wants a trial.
He is believed to be the first high school coach in the country charged criminally for the death of a player.
In court, Judge Susan Schultz Gibson removed reporters from the jury selection briefly Tuesday morning. She cited fire codes, a full room of potential jurors, and worries about their privacy.
"I'm not sure there's anybody in Jefferson County that doesn't have an opinion on this case. And a lot of them are quite strong. I believe that puts an awful lot of pressure on jurors to come in here and divulge things about themselves and opinions that could be quoted to their neighbors, anything like that. I have a great concern about that," said Schultz Gibson, Circuit Judge Div. 12.
Schultz Gibson changed her mind on the issue after a Courier-Journal attorney argued any ban on the press and public violated Kentucky law.
Stinson's attorneys objected when prosecutors asked the judge to delay the trial.
"He (Stinson) wants to go to trial. He wanted to go to trial yesterday (Monday), when we started," said Stinson attorney Brian Butler.
Prosecutor Jon Heck asked the judge for a continuance to delay the trial.
"Better to do it right, than to do it quick," Heck said.
Heck told the judge the commonwealth needed more time to study 1500 pages of documents made available in the case late last week.
"The time frame here for a case of this magnitude is such that we would be best served for allowing more time for the experts to look at this stuff, rather than going forward on a case just over seven months after indictment," Heck said.
His motion came a day after the judge ruled those records inadmissible as evidence. Heck told reporters Monday the commonwealth was ready to go to trial, within the limitations imposed by the judge's ruling.
The judge said no to any continuance. She will allow reporters and the public to watch jury selection starting Wednesday morning, as long as there is room in the courtroom to safely seat them.
Schultz Gibson ordered that journalists covering the jury selection not identify or show the faces of potential jurors in photos or video. (Louisville media have a long-standing tradition of not identifying jurors or potential jurors during trials.)
"The press is, in this case, the eyes and the ears of the public. And the public has an immense interest in seeing how justice is dispensed," said Courier-Journal attorney Jon Fleischaker.
Here's today's update from our friends at WDRB/Fox 41
Stefon Johnson got to stand in front of the courthouse downtown...
No comments:
Post a Comment