5 Men, 4 Women Selected For Jury In Jerry Sandusky Trial
BELLEFONTE (KDKA) – Five men and four women have been selected for jury duty in the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse trial.
The selection process began around 9:05 a.m. at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, Pa. Judge John Cleland told potential jury members that they will not be sequestered.
He also told them an affiliation with Penn State did not disqualify them automatically from hearing the case against Jerry Sandusky.
In a surprise development, a woman whose husband once worked with John McQueary, father of Mike McQueary, has been selected for the jury.
Judge Cleland determined she could be fair. Sandusky also told his lawyer that the woman whose husband once worked with McQueary's father could be fair.
Also, one of the selected jurors is a senior at Penn State, one of them is a former professor and a third is a graduate of Penn State.
All potential jurors were given a questionnaire which included inquiries such as, "Have you ever served as a juror before?" and "Is there any reason you could not be a fair juror in a criminal case?"
The original pool of about 200 potential jurors was reduced to smaller groups of about 40 for more individual questioning.
According to pool reporters, Sandusky's mood changed often during the morning session.
"His mood very much reflected the tone of the conversation. There were times where Judge Cleland made small jokes and small talk with the jurors.
"And at those times when the jurors were laughing, so was Sandusky. There were definitely times he looked very serious. At one point, the judge reminded the jury pool why they were there.
"He said, 'I need you to all have an open mind. This defendant is charged with the sexual abuse of children.' At that point, Jerry Sandusky looked down and did not make eye contact with anybody," pool reporter Jeannie Flitner said.
A total of 17 potential jurors said they knew someone on the prosecution's witness list. Also, 20 knew someone on the defense witness list. They will be questioned further as well.
The defense list includes Sue and Jay Paterno.
On Monday, a judge also ruled that they must use their real names and the State Supreme Court denied his appeal for a delay.
The memory of a key witness, former assistant coach Mike McQueary, could be challenged. He first testified that he saw Sandusky sexually assault a boy in March of 2002. Now prosecutors say it was a year earlier.
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