WARSAW — The selection of a 12-member jury and three alternates, was slated to take two days, but was completed by 4 p.m. today, Thursday, Sept. 29, in the murder trial of Brandon T. Woody and Kyle D. DeHart. All jurors came from the first 40 preliminary jurors called. All other potential jurors were released.

Woody and DeHart have each been charged with two counts of murder. DeHart has also been charged with obstruction of justice, in the murders of Tara Thornburg and Josh Knisley.

The trial will begin at 8:30 a.m. Monday, Oct. 3. The jurors will not be sequestered and were admonished not to read, discuss or listen to any information, or do any research regarding the case while outside the courtroom.

The final selection resulted in three men and three women being chosen. This group was then narrowed down to the final 15, with one juror being released from duty after all 16 were asked by Kosciusko Circuit Court Judge Michael Reed if anything had transpired since they answered original questions, or cause their original answers to change. Those individuals had been sequestered in a jury room while the selection process was underway.

With no jurors responding to any changes, the final juror selected was released.

The jury consists of seven men and eight women. The three alternates from these individuals will be appointed at the close of the trial, slated for Friday, Oct. 7.

Personal knowledge of facts; reading or hearing about the case; formed opinions; knowledge of any party involved (attorneys, defendants, victims or witnesses); ability to weigh only evidence presented in the courtroom; understanding of innocent until proven guilty; and problems with the principles of state having the burden of proof, defendants under no obligation to maintain his innocence and right to remain silent and not testify were among questions asked by the court. The court also asked if jurors would have a difficult time making up their mind if he/she had a difficult or distasteful decision to make, if he/she could remain objective, unemotional in making a decision based on what is seen and heard in court.

Like previous jury pools, a majority of those called had heard or read about the case. Some stated they could not separate what they heard from what will be presented, even though they all agreed the news media is not always 100 percent accurate in its reporting.

Examples by Dan Hampton, prosecuting attorney, in explaining what beyond reasonable doubt means, included the presumption and beyond reasonable doubt that getting on an airplane or driving a vehicle, meant it would work properly. Throughout the voir dire Hampton noted “there is no right or wrong answer.”

Larry Hansen, counsel for DeHart, focused on determining if a potential juror was the proper juror for this case. He stated if he was called for jury in an animal cruelty case, he would be the wrong person for that particular case, but not another type of case. “It does not mean you are a poor juror.” He also asked potential jurors the meaning and thoughts on Pleading The Fifth, or the Fifth Amendment.

Lennox, counsel for Woody, unlike the other two pools, took a more personable approach to a number of the potential jurors, asking about their occupations, if serving would interfere with work or in the case of one potential juror, college classes.