Judge says he can't seat a jury, halts trial

Judge Ric Howard announced at 11:50 a.m. that he cannot find a fair and impartial jury in Lake County.

"I thank the good people of Lake County for their services," Howard said before excusing all of the potential jurors. Some cheered in response.

Howard said the case will likely not resume for another month.

Explaining why he held jury selection in Lake County, where it became clear there was no relief from the intense media coverage, the judge said, "We do try to keep an eye on the bottom line and on keeping our cases in our own circuit."

But he said past and current media coverage — "though I don't place any blame on the media" — left him no option but to adjourn the proceedings.

After court was adjoured, Brad King, state attorney for the fifth circuit, said that the trial likely won't be able to resume until at least September or October, because of media exposure and because they couldn't pick a jury in a timely manner. The defense planned on calling expert witnesses who were not available if the case went beyond late July, King said.

King said the proceedings will not resume in Lake County, but rather in another county likely outside the Tampa Bay and Orlando media regions. King also held open the possibility that the trial itself will not be held in Citrus County.

Juror says he felt threatened

A 19-year-old Clermont man was one of 11 jurors dismissed this morning because they had been exposed to information about the case since their last interview.

The man said he had a threatening encounter with someone at a grocery store, but would not go into specifics. He also said he'd heard about the case on TV news while he was at a friend's house.

These jurors aren't happy

Change of plans, says the judge. No, you can't go home get your clothes, pack your tooth brush and kiss pumpkin good-bye. You're not leaving this court building!

Judge Ric Howard plans to sequester the jury immediately, after losing 11 jurors this morning. And they've been murmuring among themselves, while the judge invites potential jurors to the bench to renew hardship claims.

That process, though, was cut short by a recess.

"And don't anyone talk to these jurors," the judge warned the media.

The group is being kept under tight supervision: "This isn't time for a smoke break."

Oh, and the judge isn't happy, either.

They're dropping like flies

We haven't even gotten started questioning the jurors, and already — despite the judge's orders not to read any media accounts — 11 jurors have been excused because they gleaned more knowledge about the details of the case since first being questioned.

All the jurors are present, so they are being questioned at the bench (with static white noise drowning out the conversations).   

The large exodus complicates the proceedings. Judge Ric Howard wanted at least 70 potential jurors for second-round questioning; attorneys seemed to like the number 60. The court had 58 when it recessed yesterday. That number is now down to 47, and is dropping by the minute.

The morning routine

The judge just took the bench, and defense attorney Dan Lewan went through the morning routine, asking for a change of venue.

"Increasingly it is evident, we're not going to be able to get a fair and impartial jury in Lake County," Lewan said.

This time, though, the motion was accompanied by what looked like hundreds of pages of media reports in Lake County through yesterday, and Lewan pointed out the the local paper — which one, we're not sure, because there are a couple — dealt with the confession in its lead headline, to illustrate the intense media attention.

Nonetheless, motion denied.

We're up and running with more non-climaxes

Court, though, isn't quite yet.

We had some technical difficulties yesterday after lunch, which delayed postings, but yesterday's entries have now all made thier way onto the blog.

Court was supposed to commence at 8:30 a.m. today, but Judge Ric Howard has had several sidebars in his chambers and has yet to take the bench. Apparently, at least one juror did not know he or she had to show up, so we're waiting for them to arrive.

Once that juror appears, the second round of jury questioning will begin, and we'll have live updates, once again.

***

There was a distraction for the media during this morning's downtime: A burning smell was coming from the media area of the gallery.

With eight computers and a television camera daisy-chained together to a couple of outlets, there was some concern.

The bailiffs finally asked members of the media to check to see if their computer plugs were burning. No. The sniffing continued until the smell worsened. Finally, the bailiff reported that the smell was the result of the courthouse roof being tarred.

No celebration in courtroom

After being excused, a potential juror, who was excused because of financial hardship related to owning a tow-truck company, was overheard just outside the courtroom yelling: "Ah, ha! Yes! Ah, ha!"

But the tired court and gallery isn't celebrating.

Over 163 jurors have been questioned through Wednesday evening. Judge Ric Howard excused more than half of the potential jurors because they had previous knowledge of John Couey's confession.

The process for dismissing a juror, usually at the defense's request, is for the judge to ask for motions, the defense to ask that the potential juror be dismissed, and the prosecution to object, if they wish.

By the end of the day, prosecutor Pete Magrino was so exhausted — often shaking his head at the defense's drawn-out inquiry — he preempted the process, saying "no objection," almost immediately after the word "confession" rolled of a potential juror's tongue.

Fifty-nine passed the examination by the end of today to make it to the second round of jury questioning.

However, one juror left the pool because of a medical concern. Before proceedings started Wednesday, bailiffs were overheard discussing a potential juror who had suffered a panic attack while leaving court Tuesday night. The bailiffs told her to return Wednesday with a doctor's note.

Judge Howard would like to have at least 70 in the pool to start this second round, but he decided to stop short with today's numbers, despite the defense's concerns they will not be able to get the jury they need.

A final pool of 16 is required: 12 jurors, as required in a capital case, and four alternates.

If the jury can not be selected from the group of 58, the judge can call back almost 60 jurors that were summoned, but never faced first-round questioning.

Judge Howard said after jury selection, the trial will not resume until Monday with opening statements in Citrus County.

Juror misconduct?

The defense continues to chip away at the growing number of potential jurors reporting that the people are discussing the case among themselves in the jury room.

In the most detailed recount of these conversations yet, a juror told defense attorney Dan Lewan that a group of four to five people were talking about the case and telling jurors — including the one on the witness stand — that John Couey: "raped a little girl, and then put her in a bag outback."

The potential jurors also expressed the opinion that John Couey should be put to death for committing the crime.

There have been a couple of sidebars throughout the day in the Judge's chambers, including one immediately after lunch. However, the court has yet to discuss this issue in the media's presence.

The juror who reported hearing these conversations was kept for a second round of questioning, over defense attorney Dan Lewan's objections.

Back where we started

The first juror, a white female, who was questioned after lunch when asked about the case, said through her tears:

"I know that he took a little girl, that he raped her and buried her alive. I know that he confessed, and then withdrew it. And I feel that he is truly guilty."

The second juror also knew about the confession.

The third said he had no knowledge of the case, and told the judge he is "Able, willing and ready" to serve.

This juror is the first to appear to be eager to have an opportunity to sit on the jury, and despite divulging more knowledge of the case than he first let on, he was kept for the next round of questioning.

Confession draws out proceedings

The court questioned 30 potential jurors this morning. Judge Ric Howard tossed 17 because they had knowledge of John Couey's confession.

Seven potential jurors were selected for the second-round of questioning. That brings the total number in the second-round pool to 48.

The court has recessed until 1 p.m.