Needing only four, maybe more, citizens to qualify, attorneys left no detail behind while questioning prospective jurors Thursday morning in the Ross Harris murder trial.
At one point lead defense counsel Maddox Kilgore quizzed a juror about her husband donning the costume of Home Depot’s cartoon mascot, Homer. Juror 78, like her spouse, works for Home Depot, where Harris was employed until his arrest in June 2014. The 35-year-old former web developer is accused of intentionally leaving his son inside a hot car to die.
Juror 78, a graduate of the University of Alabama, as was Harris, said she hasn’t followed the case closely but wants to serve because “everyone deserves a fair trial.”
The defense is also likely to want Juror 79, a technical engineer who said he would be as skeptical about police testimony as he would anyone else’s. The juror, an African-American living in East Cobb County, said he has been a victim of racial profiling but said he could “probably” be fair to both sides.
Five more jurors need to be questioned before the next, and perhaps final, round of strikes for cause. If Cobb Superior Court Judge Mary Staley decides, as expected, to have four alternate jurors in addition to the 12 chosen to serve, at least 42 potential jurors must be qualified. Thirty-eight jurors have been qualified so far.
Return for updates.
For ongoing coverage of the Ross Harris trial, follow @ReporterJCB and @ajccourts on Twitter.
About the Author
