Day 12 - January 30, 2015

Judge O'Toole explained that jurors would decide guilt first and consider punishment only upon conviction of a capital crime. He distinguished the government's beyond-a-reasonable-doubt burden for penalty-phase intent and aggravating factors from the greater-weight standard for mitigation, which individual jurors could find without unanimity. He emphasized that death was never required. Prospective jurors also received instructions on public interviews, privacy protections, and avoiding outside information. Individual questioning explored prior guilt opinions, capital punishment, personal connections, and hardship. Juror 219 initially offered assurances of impartiality but later said she would still find guilt with little evidence and could not reserve her sentencing decision. Juror 243 expressed religious reservations while saying she could impose death in a particular case. Juror 244 described sympathy arising from the defendant's youth and her daughter's social connections, and said she did not think she could vote for death. Juror 245 acknowledged difficulty excluding publicity and possible preference for law enforcement, but ultimately said he could decide from trial evidence and consider either punishment. Juror 246 said her support for death did not override individual circumstances. The judge rejected a defense question about specific mitigating considerations as a stakeout question. Juror 250 said he would oppose death even if a case for it were made. Juror 251 acknowledged using a Facebook image marked for identification and later endorsed death for any intentional murder, despite earlier answers allowing either sentence. Juror 258 alternated between uncertainty and conditional willingness to impose death, ending with acknowledged ambivalence and a promise to consider all factors. The judge struck Juror 219 and Juror 251, relying primarily on volatility for Juror 251 without deciding the disputed meaning of his Facebook opinions. Juror 255 was designated for a hardship excuse but had not yet been excused. Juror 276 was provisionally excluded pending review. Jurors 243, 245, 246, and 258 remained on the court's list, not a final selected jury.