They’re done for the day

At 2:40 p.m. Boise time (as opposed to the time stamps on this blog, which are in Pacific time and so show one hour earlier), jury selection wrapped up for today. Since the lunch break, four more jurors have been approved, and five have been excused. That brings the total number approved so far up to 40.

Among those excused were one the judge dismissed on his own motion, even though neither party objected to her as a juror. That juror had wavered back and forth during questioning as to whether or not her mind was already made up in the case. “In general, I don’t believe in the death penalty, but he did such horrific, violent things to these children that I don’t think he deserves to live,” the young woman said. She also had told the court that, as a stay-at-home mom with no day care, she’d have to have her four-year-old daughter go to work with her dad or grandma if she served as a juror. But she said she’d serve as a juror if she had to.

After the prospective juror was led out of the room, U.S. District Judge Edward Lodge said, “I have reservations about this particular juror. … One of my responsibilities, of course, is to make sure the decision is based on reason rather than emotion.” On her questionnaire, the juror had indicated she didn’t feel she could keep an open mind, the judge noted. “I just feel there’s an underlying bias there that does not make this person a suitable juror. On the court’s own motion, I’m going to discharge the juror.” Defendant Joseph Duncan asked no questions of any of the prospective jurors today, but sat alone at the defense table, his standby attorneys lined up along the courtroom’s side wall behind him, where they sat silently, sometimes going through papers.

Of the other four prospective jurors excused this afternoon, two indicated they’d already decided Duncan should be executed, and the other two had schedule conflicts, including starting college fulltime later this month and hosting a family wedding in two weeks. Among the jurors “passed for cause,” or approved today to serve on the jury if they’re not tossed off by peremptory challenges later, were one who wrote in his questionnaire that the type of books he reads in his spare time is “porn,” and one whose husband is serving time in prison for aggravated assault.