Post by tonya on Feb 28, 2006 21:14:10 GMT -5
February 28, 2006
Judge: Summon 1,100 jurors for Deltona murder trial
DELAND -- Eleven times as many jurors as usual will be needed for the Deltona mass murder trial.
Circuit Judge William A. Parsons wants 1,100 people summoned as potential jurors for the trial, scheduled for April. During a typical criminal case, 100 potential Volusia County jurors are ordered in so that defense attorneys and prosecutors can whittle the list down and later choose from a final pool of 33.
From the 1,100 people, 12 jurors, along with four or five alternates, will be chosen. The jurors empanelled will decide the fate of the accused ringleader in the murders, Troy Victorino, and his accomplices, Jerone Hunter and Michael Salas.
Victorino, 29, Hunter, 19 and Salas, 20, are charged with six counts of first-degree murder and face the death penalty. A fourth man, Robert Cannon, 19, pleaded guilty in October to his role in the murders and will get a life sentence instead of the death penalty in exchange for his testimony.
Next week, court employees will begin issuing summonses for potential jurors, to the tune of 110 a day, said jury coordinator Susy Wisniowski. The process will last two weeks.
The reason for so many jurors: The case in which six people were found slain in a Deltona home has generated an enormous amount of publicity. Also, three defendants will stand trial at the same time, Wisniowski said.
"We'll have to bring our Tylenol," she smiled, explaining how tiring the process will be. "We'll be managing jurors every day."
Judge Parsons outlined the selection process Monday during a court hearing. Defense attorneys told the judge they fear an unbiased jury cannot be found locally. An attorney for one of the defendants asked about the possibility the trial will be moved out of the county.
But the judge said he wants the case tried in Volusia. Parsons said he believes a jury will be chosen despite the publicity and other issues that may arise.
Those potential issues could relate to the publicity the murders generated and whether to select people who do not agree with the death penalty, the judge said. Also, asking jurors to be on a trial that will be longer than a month raises financial issues, Parsons said.
Sheriff's investigators said the four men broke into a home at 3106 Telford Lane on Aug. 6, 2004, and bludgeoned to death with aluminum bats four men, two women and a dog. They also stabbed and slit the victims' throats, deputies said.
Killed were Erin Belanger, 22, Francisco "Flaco" Ayo-Roman, 30, Anthony Vega, 34, Roberto "Tito" Gonzalez, 28, Michelle Nathan, 19, and Jonathan Gleason, 17.
It's finally time for judgement day
.
Judge: Summon 1,100 jurors for Deltona murder trial
DELAND -- Eleven times as many jurors as usual will be needed for the Deltona mass murder trial.
Circuit Judge William A. Parsons wants 1,100 people summoned as potential jurors for the trial, scheduled for April. During a typical criminal case, 100 potential Volusia County jurors are ordered in so that defense attorneys and prosecutors can whittle the list down and later choose from a final pool of 33.
From the 1,100 people, 12 jurors, along with four or five alternates, will be chosen. The jurors empanelled will decide the fate of the accused ringleader in the murders, Troy Victorino, and his accomplices, Jerone Hunter and Michael Salas.
Victorino, 29, Hunter, 19 and Salas, 20, are charged with six counts of first-degree murder and face the death penalty. A fourth man, Robert Cannon, 19, pleaded guilty in October to his role in the murders and will get a life sentence instead of the death penalty in exchange for his testimony.
Next week, court employees will begin issuing summonses for potential jurors, to the tune of 110 a day, said jury coordinator Susy Wisniowski. The process will last two weeks.
The reason for so many jurors: The case in which six people were found slain in a Deltona home has generated an enormous amount of publicity. Also, three defendants will stand trial at the same time, Wisniowski said.
"We'll have to bring our Tylenol," she smiled, explaining how tiring the process will be. "We'll be managing jurors every day."
Judge Parsons outlined the selection process Monday during a court hearing. Defense attorneys told the judge they fear an unbiased jury cannot be found locally. An attorney for one of the defendants asked about the possibility the trial will be moved out of the county.
But the judge said he wants the case tried in Volusia. Parsons said he believes a jury will be chosen despite the publicity and other issues that may arise.
Those potential issues could relate to the publicity the murders generated and whether to select people who do not agree with the death penalty, the judge said. Also, asking jurors to be on a trial that will be longer than a month raises financial issues, Parsons said.
Sheriff's investigators said the four men broke into a home at 3106 Telford Lane on Aug. 6, 2004, and bludgeoned to death with aluminum bats four men, two women and a dog. They also stabbed and slit the victims' throats, deputies said.
Killed were Erin Belanger, 22, Francisco "Flaco" Ayo-Roman, 30, Anthony Vega, 34, Roberto "Tito" Gonzalez, 28, Michelle Nathan, 19, and Jonathan Gleason, 17.
It's finally time for judgement day
.
