SEATTLE – The voyeurism and child pornography charges Steve Powell is facing as his trial begins today in Tacoma have nothing to do with the horrific murder-suicide of his son, Josh, and Josh’s two young boys. Nor are they about the bizarre disappearance of Josh’s wife, Susan, from their Utah home in 2009.

But Susan Powell’s relatives hope the trial nevertheless sheds light on those tragedies.

“We don’t expect a great deal, but we want to be there,” said her father, Chuck Cox. “Maybe he’ll decide he has lost, and that he needs to propose a bargain to tell the detectives what he knows. Perhaps he might decide he can inflict one more insult by blurting out something that might be useful.”

Steve Powell, who had a close relationship with his son, has remained jailed on $200,000 bail since his arrest last September, and he has made no public statements about the murder-suicide.

He is charged with more than a dozen counts of voyeurism and one count of possession of child pornography. If convicted, he would face a guideline sentence of about four years; however, the state has alleged aggravating circumstances that could result in a longer term.

Jury selection in Steve Powell’s voyeurism case is scheduled to begin today before Judge Ronald Culpepper, with 70 jurors being brought in to fill out questionnaires. Opening statements are expected Wednesday.

One of Powell’s lawyers, Mark Quigley, said he expected some of the backstory of the case to be discussed at the trial, but he added: “We know what it’s about and what it’s not about. It’s not about his son and his son’s wife.” He declined to say whether he expects Powell to testify.