Local

Kerrick Trial - Day 2 - July 21

What to know:

  • Randall "Wes" Kerrick is accused of shooting and killing unarmed Jonathan Ferrell in September 2013.
  • Jury selection could take weeks with 1,900 potential jurors. 1,019 are expected the first week; 880 are expected the next.
  • Dash cam video will be released during the trial.

Trial Archive:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer Randall "Wes" Kerrick will be back in the courtroom Tuesday, as attorneys question another round of potential jurors.

6:00 p.m. update: Anchor Scott Wickersham spoke with Charlotte NAACP President Corine Mack by phone Tuesday. She has trouble understanding why Kerrick has not entered the courthouse through the front entrance.

"The fact that they think it's OK to have him, his attorney and his wife go through the judges' parking lot tells me we may have (a) problem," Mack said. "To get into the courtroom without having to deal with the press or people who may be outside, we've been very respectful."

The Sheriff's Department is in charge of Kerrick's security.

In a statement released to Channel 9, the department said:

"Mr. Kerricks movements are a security matter solely for safety and to ensure that nothing interferes with courts proceedings."

Mack added this:

"How would he be in danger? There have been peaceful protests. We all have gone in the courtroom and sat quietly. Where has anyone threatened him?"

4:30 p.m. update: The 12 people who will sit in judgment of Randall "Wes" Kerrick will first have to pass through a gauntlet of questions from attorneys on both sides of the case.
 
Each will have a simple goal, an expert said.
 
"We're looking for people who are going to be our problems," Matt McCusker said.

He is a professional jury consultant who has worked to help attorneys select juries in cases all over the United States.
 
Attorneys in the Kerrick case will be trying to spot potential jurors who could have hidden biases, McCusker said.
 
For Kerrick's defense team, that might include people who've paid attention to the case or those who have strong views about the police brutality cases in Ferguson, Missouri, or Baltimore.
 
They might also be concerned about anyone who has had a bad experience with police.
 
As for prosecutors, they're likely looking out for anyone with strong views in support of police or anyone who has been a recent victim of crime, McCusker said. 
 
It's crucial to identify not only those views, but also any potential juror likely to persuade others.
 
"When it comes to those 12 people talking this out and coming to a solution, leaders, you need to spot them and you need to know as much as you can about them," he said.
 
Juror questionnaires provided some of the information attorney are looking for.
 
"The entire process has to be set on figuring out who the worst jurors are, uncovering them and striking them. That's what jury selection is really about," McCusker said. Each side in the case gets six strikes that can be used to disqualify a potential juror for any reason. The judge can also excuse any juror he chooses.

3 p.m. update:  Intense questioning of jurors is something usually reserved for capital cases -- those carrying the death penalty.

But attorney Tony Scheer, a former prosecutor, said cases like Kerrick’s can also apply.

“It is used when you've got tremendous amount of pre-trial publicity, when you have powder-keg issues like the race issue that exists here in the Kerrick trial,” Sheer said.

12:01 p.m. update: One of the potential jurors told attorneys that despite all the publicity surrounding the case, he had heard nothing about it. But he said that he watches a lot of reality television and Internet posts about police and believes that police live in constant fear.

Prosecutors had wanted him dismissed, but the judge said no -- at least not yet.

Another potential juror said as soon as she heard and read about the shooting of Ferrell, she felt that Kerrick was guilty. But she said in court that she could set that aside and be fair, and so over the objections of the defense, the judge let her sit on the jury panel for now.

It's the back and forth of jury selection that is so critical in this case and Channel 9’s legal analyst, attorney Tony Scheer, said it's why the judge is having jurors questioned individually:

“It's very rare outside of capital first-degree murder death penalty prosecutions…but it is used when you got a tremendous amount of pretrial publicity, when you have powder keg issues like the race issue that exists here in the Kerrick trial,” Scheer said.

11:48 a.m. update: Georgia Ferrell, mother of Jonathan Ferrell, and other family come into court for the first time. They're seated in the front row.

11:31 a.m. update: Reporter Mark Becker reports that prospecting jurors had to answer a lot of very probing questions about what they know about the case and other cases around the country where police used deadly force.

The judge has excused two potential jurors already who said they either had their minds made up or the trial would put too much hardship on them.

https://twitter.com/MarkBeckerWSOC9/status/623517583011135488

10:18 a.m. update: The jury selection process has started again for Kerrick's trial. Follow Mark Becker on Twitter for live updates.

https://twitter.com/MarkBeckerWSOC9/status/623496742584078336

Prospective jurors are saying that have seen or heard about the trial from local media sources.

Two women have already been excused by attorneys.

The judge has made it clear that transparency will be a top priority during the high-profile trial. Tuesday will be the second day of jury selection.

Kerrick was in the courtroom Monday with his wife and his attorneys by his side. A group of family and friends sat behind him.

“Whether I'm the prosecutor or the defense, I always wanted to have family representatives there just in terms of -- to humanize the person,” said legal analyst Rob Corbett.

Also present were about a dozen protesters who marched over earlier in the morning from Marshall Park. They have vowed to attend every day to monitor the proceedings, saying they are determined to keep demonstrations peaceful.

With ongoing publicity for years before this trial, legal experts said it can have an impact.

“One big effect it's going to have is on the jury questioning, because a lot of people have heard about this case, a lot of people will be familiar with Ferguson and North Charleston,” said legal expert James Wyatt.

Jurors will be asked how much they know about Ferrell's death, and the volatile climate surrounding other police shootings around the country.

In an unusual move Monday, the judge ruled their answers will also be shared with the media. That could produce fallout and complications for both sides.

Channel 9 obtained a list of nearly 200 potential witnesses. It includes Kerrick and 84 other police officers.

Randall "Wes" Kerrick is accused of shooting and killing unarmed Jonathan Ferrell on Sept. 14, 2013.

Three officers were called to the 7500 block of Reedy Creek Road in east Mecklenburg County around 2:30 that morning. A woman told police Ferrell was banging on her front door.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said Ferrell ran toward the officers when they arrived. One of the officers deployed his Taser, but it was unsuccessful. Kerrick fired his weapon 12 times at close range. Ten of the shots hit Ferrell, killing him.

Police later discovered a wrecked car that Ferrell was driving about 500 yards away. Officers say Ferrell was unarmed.

Around 9:30 p.m. Sept. 14, 2013, Kerrick was charged with voluntary manslaughter, marking the first time an officer in Charlotte had been charged with manslaughter for actions on duty.

Kerrick was released from jail on a $50,000 bond. He remains suspended without pay from CMPD.

Ferrell, a former football player at Florida A&M University, was living in Charlotte with his fiancée. A toxicology report released in November showed Ferrell had 60 mg/dl of ethanol in his system, equal to a .06 if blown during a DWI check point. The legal limit in North Carolina is .08.

The Ferrell family filed a civil suit against the city, county, CMPD and former Police Chief Rodney Monroe on Jan. 14, 2014. The suit was settled in May 2015 for $2.25 million.

George Laughrun and Michael J. Greene will represent Kerrick. His attorneys were hired by the Fraternal Order of Police.

Recent stories:

Channel 9 will have a team of reporters covering the Kerrick trial each day. Follow @wsoctv on Twitter for continuous updates.

Twitter handles for reporters who will be covering the trial:

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