BRUNSWICK — Two days ago it appeared jury selection would take longer than the two weeks allotted by the judge in the hot car murder trial.
On Thursday it looked like that deadline would be met with ease as 11 prospective jurors were moved into the final pool.
After the fifth day of jury selection it became clear that predicting what this panel of Glynn County residents might do is a fool’s errand. The final juror screened Friday broke down in tears, saying, “I don’t think I could get through it.”
Of the 12 jurors screened Friday, eight said they strongly believed Justin Ross Harris was guilty of intentionally leaving his son inside a hot car to die, as charged. Most of them said they don't think those opinions could be changed.
Six of the prospective jurors were added to the pool, bringing the total to 23.
At least 42 prospective jurors must be selected to serve on the basis that they can be unbiased. This would allow prosecutors and defense attorneys to exercise their strikes to get 12 jurors and four alternates.
Of the first 36 jurors, the state and defense have clashed on only three. Superior Court Judge Mary Staley Clark, who moved the trial from Cobb County after struggling to find enough impartial jurors, sided with the defense once and with the prosecution twice.
Among the jurors struck for cause Friday: A Nancy Grace fan who said she’s already formed an opinion that Harris is guilty and a landscape architect who said he “wouldn’t be able to ignore” preconceived notions about the defendant’s culpability.
For a more complete wrap-up of the first week of jury selection, check MyAJC.com and Sunday’s print edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Harris is the subject of the second season of the AJC's podcast series "Breakdown," which will follow the trial's developments.
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