Saturday, July 23, 2011
Selection for ’09 case expected to be lengthy
YOUNGSTOWN
The capital murder case against Lorenza Barnette is set to begin Monday, nearly two years after the crime, but prosecutors and defense attorneys need to seat a jury to hear the case.
Barnette, 29, of Lora Avenue, is one of three men charged in the murders of Jaron L. Roland, 20, of Fairmont Avenue and Darry B. Woods-Burt Jr., 19, of the city’s North Side. The victims in the case were described as inseparable cousins by family members.
The two men were bound, gagged, beaten and smothered at a home in the 400 block of Fairgreen Avenue before they were found dead Aug. 11, 2009, in a burning rental car along the Mahoning River near West Avenue, prosecutors say.
Barnette appeared Friday morning before Judge Maureen Sweeney of Mahoning County Common Plea Court for the start of jury selection in the case. That process, however, may be more lengthy than anticipated and will resume Monday morning.
The court summoned 113 people to take part in the jury pool Friday. The judge explained to the prospective jurors that they could be asked to decide if Barnette would face the death penalty.
Judge Sweeney also told the potential jurors that the trial could take several weeks. She said the jurors would not be sequestered during the trial but would be sequestered in a local hotel during their deliberations until a verdict has been reached.
Judge Sweeney asked preliminary questions of the potential jurors to determine who would be excused from the proceedings. More than half of those summoned told the judge they had an issue that would prevent them from serving on the jury.
No one in the jury pool raised a hand to indicate a moral or religious belief that would prevent them from passing judgment or serving on the jury. Other reasons such as vacations, family obligations, hearing problems, job requirements and school were plentiful.
The court took several minutes to listen to a short reason why each person with a raised hand could not sit on the jury before calling recess. The more than 50 people looking to be released from jury duty will have to come in and speak with the judge individually Monday.
Joseph Moreland, 28, of Mahoning County jail and Kenneth Moncrief, 26, of the Fairgreen Avenue address also are charged in the murders.
The suffocation victims were found with their heads encased in dark plastic garbage bags and duct tape, with their wrists and ankles bound with duct tape, after a fisherman spotted the burning car.
No bullet or stab wounds were found on the victims.
The bill of particulars, filed by assistant Mahoning County prosecutors, says Barnette bought the duct tape and plastic bags at a store. The items of evidence prosecutors listed for the defense includes a discount-store surveillance video and sales receipt.
The bill of particulars does not specify a motive for the slayings.
Both victims’ cellphones were taken by the suspects, who used an accelerant to set the car ablaze, the bill of particulars says.