Change of trial site sought in capital case

The defense would like to keep a jury from seeing a photo of a decapitated corpse.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Attorneys for the man charged with killing two women in a Newton Township home Dec. 21 and burning their bodies want a change of trial venue.
That request is among several motions filed in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court by Attys. Donald J. Malarcik and Lawrence R. Smith of Akron.
They represent Jermaine McKinney, who has addresses in Girard and Youngstown, who could get the death penalty if convicted.
McKinney is accused of killing Rebecca Cliburn, 45, of Warren, and her mother, Wanda Rollyson, 70, in Rollyson's Newton Township home after going there to rob them.
Three female accomplices have also been charged, but McKinney is the only one who faces murder charges.
Judge W. Wyatt McKay, who will hear the case, has not ruled on any of the motions. McKinney's trial is set for Sept. 5.
The defense says a change of venue is necessary because of extensive and ongoing pretrial publicity.
It also asks that the jurors be sequestered for the duration of the trial, meaning they would not be allowed to go home.
The defense also filed several motions dealing with the selection of a jury, asking that the state be prohibited from excluding all prospective jurors who express concerns over use of the death penalty.
Other requests
In a related motion, the defense asks that the prosecution be required to state reasons for exercising peremptory challenges in jury selection.
In general, peremptory challenges by either defense or prosecution do not require an explanation as to the reason for the juror's being dismissed.
Another motion asks the court to hold a pretrial hearing to preview photographs of the victims and prevent the state from admitting any of them into evidence.
"All of the photographs are exceptionally gruesome and would surely inflame the passions of the lay jurors wholly unaccustomed to seeing any pictures of dead bodies, much less these horrific depictions of a decapitated corpse," the filing says.
A motion asks also that all exhibits and extraneous materials be kept outside the presence or view of the jury until the exhibits are admitted into evidence and that they not be displayed gratuitously during the trial.
Another motion asks that the court prohibit the prosecution from presenting victim-impact evidence during the trial.
runyan@vindy.com