Week one of the Justin Ross Harris murder trial started slow but ended pretty much on schedule, with jury selection likely to end by next Friday as planned. Harris, a former Home Depot web developer, is accused of intentionally leaving his son inside a hot car to die. The defense says it was an accident.
The two sides have mostly agreed on which jurors they found acceptable. They locked horns on three jurors, one of whom was deemed ineligible and two who were moved into the final pool by Cobb County Superior Court Judge Mary Staley Clark.
The numbers: At least 42 jurors are needed for the final pool; 23 — 15 women and eight men — have qualified so far. From that pool, 12 jurors and four alternates will be selected.
A different track? Harris' trial was moved to Brunswick after Staley Clark determined a fair and impartial jury couldn't be seated in Cobb County. It turned out that she had second thoughts about six jurors she had allowed into the final pool, over the defense's objections. Each of those jurors had said that they would try and base their decisions on the evidence, following the law, even though they said they believed Harris was guilty.
This past week, in Brunswick, Juror #1 sounded a similar note, saying he believed Harris was “not innocent based on those long lists of charges.” He said he told his wife the same thing. Under questioning, he waffled over whether he could base his verdict solely on what he heard in the courtroom.
Defense attorney Maddox Kilgore argued the juror should be struck for cause because he couldn’t be impartial. Over the state’s objection, Staley Clark sided with the defense. “He did, in fact, say his opinion would never change,” she said when issuing her decision.
I knew you when: When questioning one prospective juror, Kilgore applauded her for never having received a traffic ticket. "I got my first ticket when I was 16 years old," Kilgore told the juror. He then turned to the bench and looked at Staley Clark, who didn't miss a beat. "You deserved every bit of it," she said, before Kilgore could get a word out. As it turned out, Staley Clark presided as judge and meted out the punishment for Kilgore's first ticket.
A common thread: A few jurors have stood out, for various reasons, and tragedy bound them all.
Juror #23, a grandmother whose sons are 46 and 47, was among the oldest, and most engaged, citizens on the panel. She made it clear she has no use for modern technology. “I’m old school,” she said. “If it wasn’t for my son, I wouldn’t have a cell phone.” If it was up to her former husband, Juror #23 would still be married. “My first husband cheated on me,” she said. “He didn’t want the divorce, but I did.”
She said she had served on four juries previously — two in Brunswick, two in her native New Jersey. She was elected foreperson on one, a post she took seriously. “They didn’t want to do it and some person had to step up. I’m someone who’ll step up,” she said. “I made sure they looked at the evidence three times.”
When Juror #23 was 12 years old, her father, a police officer, was shot and killed in the line of duty. “Made me a stronger person. I know who I am,” she said.
Juror #20, meanwhile, seems made for the Harris trial.
She had an affair, as did the defendant. Like Harris, she had relationships with people she met online, including the man she eventually married.
“Sometimes we forget that everyone has humanity,” she said, discussing people who commit heinous crimes.
She also lost a child at a young age and said she couldn’t handle seeing pictures of a dead child, as will be required of the Harris jury.
Juror #15 lost three babies at birth. He’s involved in a ministry for single mothers and babysits for those moms two days a month. His voice quavering, he said he can’t even watch TV shows that deal with children with medical issues.
But that may not keep him off the jury because he said he’d try to do his best to put his thoughts of past tragedies aside if selected. He was moved into the final pool of 42 jurors, along with Juror #20.
Start without me: On Tuesday, Juror #6, a local contractor and father of four, showed up 20 minutes late, drawing an admonition from the judge. The next day, he slept for at least 15 minutes in the jury box, his head cradled in his hand. He also reeked of marijuana, Cobb prosecutor Chuck Boring said. But those missteps didn't disqualify him — however, his 1989 felony conviction that he failed to disclose did. "Let him go find himself some sleep somewhere," Staley Clark said, dismissing him for cause.
"I don't think I could get through this": Juror #36, the last Glynn County resident questioned on Friday, broke down in tears before attorneys questioned her a third time and both sides agreed to move on without her.
Once a jury is selected, testimony in the trial is expected to begin Oct. 3.
You can follow the latest developments in the case on Twitter at @AJCBreakdown and at AJC.com. AJC reporters Christian Boone (@reporterJCB) and Bill Rankin (@ajccourts) will be in Brunswick for the duration of the trial.
Harris is also the subject of the second season of the AJC's podcast series "Breakdown," which will follow the trial's developments.
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