The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1954-10-23
Sheppard Trial
In Weekend Recess
With Jurors Picked
By WILLIAM NEWKiRK

Susan Hayes to the effects of pub
Lefty on jury, the Sheppard MUIR
der trial was in a weekend recess
today with II jurors tentatively
picked, and challenging likely to
start Monday.
DR.. Samuel Sheppard, a slender,
handsome osteopath, is accused of
bludgeoning his pregnant wife to
death July after an affair some
weeks earlier with Miss Hayes, a
cute 24-year-old hospital techni-
clan.
Court resumes Monday when
state and defense attorneys can
begin using their six peremptory
challenges each 10 dismiss jurors
they feel are not qualified. There
are seven women and five men
now in the jury box.
Neither the prosecution nor the
defense would say how many chal-
lenges they plan to use, but Judge
Edward Blythin said he doubted
that more than four jurors would
be excused.
After the challenges have been
used and the excused jurors are
replaced, an alternate must be
chosen.
Then with the final jury seated,
one more legal step remains be-
fore the state can start its case.
That is a motion for a change of
venue, introduced by the chief de-
tense attorney, william ]. Corri-
gan.
Corigan, starting a theme he
repeated constantly in the first
five days of the trial, contended
publicity given the case by news
papers, radio and television had
made it impossible for Sheppard
to get q fair trial in Cuyhoga
County.
Judge Biythin refused then to
decide upon the motion until after
an attempt had been made to pick
a fair and impartial jury. That,
he said, would be the real test of
whether the trial should be moved
to another county.
The 18th juror is Mrs. Luella
Williams, a divorcee and mother
of four grown children. She is the
only Negro tentatively seated on
the jury.
The other juror picked yesterday
was a letter carrier, Gerald L.
Liederbach.
The court used up 80 Of the
original panel of 66 prospective ju-
rors, excusing some for illness
and others because they had fixed
opinions on the guilty or innocence
of the defendant or were opposed
to capital punishment.
One of the panel members ex-
cused yesterday was pretty bru-
nette who admitted she discussed
the case all week with friends and
relatives, despite Judge Blythin's
order last Monday not to talk about
it at all.
For disobeying his order, Mrs.
Betty Marie Parker was liable to
a contempt citation. But the judge
never mentioned this, although he
sternly reprimanded her.
She had been getting along
splendidly under questioning by
Defense Atty. Fred w. Garmone
until he started asking her whether
she discussed the case in telephone
calls.
While Judge Blythin's eyes grew
wide in surprise, she told of talk
ing about the trial this week with
her sister, "my girl friend" and
finally with nearly all of the IS
women with whom she works at a
factory.
During the five days needed to
pick a tentative jury the 30-year-
old defendant sat in the courtroom
with few outward signs of emotion.
He had warm smiles for his ia
Their and two brothers, who also
are osteopaths.
Most of the time he sat quietly
watching his lawyers and the three
assistant prosecutors while they
quizzed prospective jurors. Occa-
sionally his eyes drifted to the So
odd newsmen, who took up most
of the spectators eats in the
small courtroom. His expression
seemed reproachful then.
His slender fingers usually were
locked and held under his chin or
out a few inches from his face.
| Sometimes he would close his eyes
and squeeze tightly with his
clasped hands in what appeared
to be moments of mental stress.
! Indicted on a first degree muir
der charge last Aug. II, DR.. Shep-
pard has maintained steadfastly
that his 31-year-old wife was killed
by a bushy haired intruder VINO
knocked him out when he tried to
aid her.
His wife, Marilyn, mother of his
six-year old son, was four months
pregnant when her bloody body
was found in their suburban Bay
Village home on the shore of Lake
Erie.
The defense has said it will show
in the trial that Sheppard is an