As Rae Carruth's capital murder trial begins today in a Charlotte courtroom, it will start without 12 of its most important participants - the members of the jury. For Carruth's lawyers, the first of many challenges will be to find a dozen people who will acquit the former Carolina Panthers player or, if necessary, save his life. Jury selection, with its repetitive questions and answers, can seem monotonous. But this is when trials can be won or lost, for both sides.
Jury selection is the most important part of the entire trial.
The greatest criminal lawyers are the best at picking juries. If you don't have a jury that is attentive to your style and open to your position, it doesn't make a difference if you do a good job. Carruth and three other men have been charged with first-degree murder in the Nov. 16 shooting of Cherica Adams. Doctors saved the baby, Chancellor, but Adams died a month later. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Carruth, 26.