Can jurors remain unbiased?
Rhonda Banik sobbed as she described the screams she heard from a woman just outside her vacation home in Woods Bay. ‘I heard the most blood curdling cry for help,’ she told jurors on Tuesday. She was not certain whether the screams came from the kidnapped victim, however. Nate Traylor/Leader
Media coverage plays role in Devlin jury selection
The retrial in the case of Charles Devlin began with an arduous jury selection process Monday and continued through a better part of Tuesday, as attorneys on both sides sought jurors who felt they could remain unbiased, despite media coverage of the events leading up to Devlin’s arrest last summer.
In an unusual jury selection process, potential jurors were polled individually in district court on Monday and Tuesday morning. Deputy county attorney Mark Russell and defense attorney Ben Anciaux had to weed out those who admitted to being influenced by media coverage surrounding the suspected kidnapper.
Devlin has been the topic of several articles in the Lake County Leader. The most recent appeared in the March 29 issue. That article focused on the mistrial declared on Monday, March 26, after a Sheriff’s deputy inadvertently testified that he knew Devlin was on probation at the time of his arrest.
Prior to last month’s trial, Anciaux was able to get Devlin’s criminal background suppressed in order to give the defendant a fair trial, but nobody informed the deputies who were waiting elsewhere in the courthouse, preparing to provide testimony.
Another article published last fall focused on the fact that Devlin has run up more than $20,000 in medical bills at taxpayer expense, in the weeks following his arrest. Devlin said in an interview then that he suffers from many health complications that were compounded by his arrest, but doctors were unable to confirm many of these complications once he was examined at local hospitals.
Potential jurors were asked if they listen to KERR Radio and if they read or subscribe to the Leader. As of Tuesday morning, eight individuals were recused from duty because they said couldn’t look beyond what was reported in local media. However, many of them interviewed said they would be able to remain impartial, despite the prior coverage.
Anciaux had filed a motion to change the trial venue, arguing that it would be difficult to find an impartial jury, but that motion was denied by Judge Kim Christopher last week.
Devlin faces charges of kidnapping, felony DUI, obstructing a peace officer and failing to provide proof of insurance. The trial is expected to last a couple of days, but only just began as the Leader went to press, due to the time it took to select a jury.