Boston state and federal criminal defense attorney Brad Bailey shares his expert legal analysis with FOX 25’s Bob Ward on the latest developments in the Dzhokhar Tsarnaev case.
Judge O’Toole has ruled that Tsarnaev will stand trial in Boston in January 2015. His defense had moved for a change of venue, asking that the trial be moved elsewhere on grounds that it would be impossible to get a fair trial in Boston. As Brad explains (at the 1:30 min. mark), the standard for selecting 12 jurors is not whether they have heard about the case, read about it, or even were involved in the marathon or knew someone who was… the standard is whether a prospective juror has already formed an opinion on the matter, whether that opinion biases them one way or the other, and whether they believe they can be fair and impartial. Judge O’Toole believes the Court can find 12 fair and impartial jurors in Boston.
More on the story below…
BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com/AP) — A judge has granted a two-month trial delay for Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, but denied a defense request to move his trial.
Judge George O’Toole ruled Wednesday night that the trial will begin Jan. 5 instead of Nov.3.
This comes after lawyers for Tsarnaev asked to delay his trial until at least September 2015. They also tried twice to move his trial out of Boston, arguing that he cannot get a fair trial here because of the emotional impact of the deadly attack.
Prosecutors say 21-year-old Tsarnaev and his now-deceased older brother placed two pressure cooker bombs that exploded near the marathon’s finish line last year. Three people were killed and more than 260 were injured.
Tsarnaev could face the death penalty if convicted.