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Photo Michael Iacuessa
Christopher McCowen leaving the courthouse on Tuesday.
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Photo Michael Iacuessa
Christa Worthington’s family sits in the court room. |
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Jury selection bogs down
McCowen trial expected to start this week & run for 2-3 weeks
By Michael Iacuessa
Banner Correspondent
BARNSTABLE — As the jury selection process dragged into the third day in the Christa Worthington murder trial, it became apparent how hard it is to find 16 impartial jurors able to give up three weeks of their life to sit in judgment.
With working-class citizens making up the bulk of year-round residents, a large percentage of the close to 100 people in the pool who were interviewed were excused for hardships. A sizeable number also were dismissed by Judge Gary Nickerson after admitting they had formed strong opinions about the case. About one-quarter admitted to knowing someone on the witness list.
As of the end of Tuesday, only 13 jurors had been selected — seven women and six men. Included among them, in what was a matter of controversy, were just two black people.
Defense attorney Robert George used race, as defendant Christopher McCowen is black, as one of the reasons to appeal a decision by Nickerson to deny a request for a change of venue. Of the 63 prospective jurors in the pool Monday, only one was black. That appeal was rejected Tuesday by the state Supreme Judicial Court.
George appeared frustrated by the process, using half of the 16 challenges, which are allotted to each attorney, before the seventh juror was even chosen.
George also stated that extensive media coverage of the case, both in the past and to come, is unfair to his client. Already, Court TV, 48 Hours, NPR and several television stations and newspapers are present at Barnstable County Superior Courthouse.
"You don't have to be Einstein to know there will be a tremendous amount of media coverage as this trial goes on," he argued, questioning whether jurors would be able to heed the judge’s advice not to discuss the case with others.
“I’m concerned about their ability to do it. How can they help it? By accident someone is going to mention it,” he said.
Nickerson also denied a motion by George to sequester the jury. Nickerson had sequestered a jury once before but it involved a case in which the accused was on trial for witness tampering and came only after a juror had been approached.
Still, on the jury are two people who claimed to know nothing about the case at all, including a man who said he did not own a television or read newspapers, and a woman who said she had heard about a murder but not much else. Most others said they were familiar with some details but had not followed it closely.
Seven are younger in age, 20s or 30s. At least four of those have young children.
Two teachers are on the panel as well as another woman who works at a school. One woman has a degree in criminal justice. Another man works for the department of social services in another county.
While most jurors were dismissed or challenged if they knew someone on the witness list, one juror survived that question. She said her children used to play with those of Nicholas Grefe, an attorney McCowen unsuccessfully tried to reach the day he was arrested. She also once worked with Catherine Rios Cisneros, a girlfriend of McCowen’s, but said she did not know her very well.
Each member of the jury pool was asked seven main questions. Three of those dealt directly with race. While all but two prospective jurors said race would not be a factor in their view of the case, nor would they give greater credence to testimony by a person of a certain race, several were slower to respond when asked if they thought black people were more likely to commit crimes than white people. Only one person who hesitated when asked that question was selected.
In addition to whether they had heard about the case previously, prospective jurors were also asked if they knew someone who had been involved in a violent crime or sexual assault, whether they were more likely to believe the testimony of a police officer over someone of another profession and if they had an opinion about whether a person could falsely confess to a crime.
All questions were asked by Nickerson, who also asked several follow-up questions. Neither attorney was allowed to question the pool, although George asked if he could do so. It is not uncommon in murder cases to allow attorneys to delve deeper into jurors’ opinions.
One of the reasons the trial is expected to last three weeks is the witness list, which includes close to 75 names. On it are police officers and EMTs from Provincetown to Mashpee; several members of both Worthington’s and McCowen’s families, including Ava Worthington, who was two-and-a-half years old when she was found alone next to her dead mother; and all those who had been considered suspects in the past.
Appearing on the list does not necessarily mean that person will be called to testify. Author Maria Flook and Cape Cod Times reporter Eric Williams appeared on the list but said they had not been contacted by the court or either attorney.
McCowen is accused of breaking into Worthington's Truro home and raping and murdering the 45-year-old former fashion writer. Worthington's body was found on Jan. 6, 2002. Her home was on McCowen's route when he worked as a trash collector.
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Oct 19th, 2006