Opinion ID: 2550075
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: challenges to trial court rulings on pretrial motions

Text: A. Denial of Appellant's motions for change of venue Appellant first contends the trial court abused its discretion by denying his motions for a change of venue of his trial from Bradford County. Before his trial began, Appellant made four separate motions to change the venue of his trial from Bradford County. In support of his first change of venue motion, Appellant submitted to the trial court four packets of newspaper articles taken from papers with circulation in Bradford County, as well as videotapes of television coverageall of which related details of the death of the deputies and the events which transpired thereafter. [16] Additionally, Appellant submitted photos of a memorial erected inside the courthouse to the deputy sheriffs after their death, photos of white memorial placards in memory of the deputies displayed on vehicles surrounding the Bradford County Courthouse, and census data regarding the population of Bradford County, fixing its total number of adult residents at 47,739. See N.T. Hearing, 1/7/05, at 2-6. The trial court conducted a hearing on the first change of venue motion on January 7, 2005 at which time it entertained argument. Appellant, through counsel, argued at the hearing that the media coverage was extensive, sustained, and pervasive based on the fact that 117 articles had appeared in the Bradford County papers alone since the time of the shootings. Appellant additionally contended that, because this coverage mentioned his confession, it was inherently prejudicial as a result. Appellant posited that coverage would only increase by the time of trial, and coupled with the visibility of the memorials in the courthouse and on vehicles, was going to result in a situation where, by the time of trial, nearly every one of the County's residents, due to its size, was going to have formed an opinion. Id. at 6-10. The Commonwealth [17] countered by arguing that the nature of the coverage was not prejudicial or inflammatory since one of the articles specifically mentioned that there were more questions raised than answers after Appellant's preliminary hearing, and another article quoted a defense attorney as saying that the defense had evidence that someone else is the killer. Id. at 11. The Commonwealth asserted that the mention of the confession was infrequent, having been mentioned, by its accounting, only once on television. Though acknowledging it was discussed widely in the newspapers at various points, the Commonwealth pointed out the coverage had diminished significantly by the time of the hearing. The Commonwealth further maintained that the defense had established in the media coverage its position that the comments Appellant made in the jail were not an admission of guilt but rather an expression of regret so the prejudice had been minimized. Id. at 12-13. The Commonwealth emphasized that the trial court should consider not only the nature of the coverage but also whether there had been a sufficient cooling off period for any potential prejudice from the media coverage to have dissipated. After consideration, the trial court denied the motion, without prejudice to the Appellant to raise it again at the time of individual voir dire. The court explained its rationale in its opinion, thusly: A review of [Appellant's] exhibits . . . reflecting the multimedia coverage of this case supports the contention that `contemporaneous' to the homicides (i.e. coverage during the manhunt, capture of the Defendant, funeral of the Deputies and filing and updating of the charges) the publicity in this case was sustained and arguably pervasive. However, in our view the coverage was factual and objective and was not slanted towards conviction. While there were admittedly a few references to arguably presumptively prejudicial information, such was not sustained or pervasive, nor so inculpatory or inflammatory . . . to support a change of venue/venire without establishing a nexus between the publicity and actual juror prejudice. Clearly, the deaths of two respected law enforcement officers in a small county such as Bradford, warrants caution and careful consideration as to a change of venue/venire to insure a fair trial. As noted by two citizen comments in one of the videotapes we `never had a tragedy of this magnitude in this County[,]' and `[the deceased deputies] won't be forgotten.' However, the relevant question is not whether the community remembered the case or will forget Deputies VanKuren or Burgert, but whether the prospective jurors have such fixed opinions that they can't judge impartially the alleged guilt of the [Appellant]. Additionally as noted by the comments of the prosecutor and defense counsel at argument and in the news articles, this case (given the history of [Appellant's] requests for recusals, discovery and pretrial motions, as well as motions by the Commonwealth) is not likely to be ready to proceed to trial until `spring or early summer.' Therefore, the existence of a significant `cooling off period' may minimize any potential effects of the initially more sustained publicity surrounding the events at issue. Trial Court Opinion, 2/14/05, at 1 n. 1 (citations omitted). As permitted by the trial court, Appellant renewed his motion for change of venue prior to the start of individual voir dire. In the hearing on this motion, conducted on December 5, 2005, Appellant submitted an additional four packets of materials relating to media coverage of the case since the January change of venue hearing. Appellant argued that the prejudicial nature of this coverage, coupled with what he claimed were the high number of responses by prospective jurors to written questionnaires mailed to them and returned indicating their belief in Appellant's guilt, justified a change of venue. [18] Appellant claimed that, overall, 63 percent of the jurors in the pool of prospective jurors summoned to the courthouse for the trial expressed a belief in his guilt; however he estimated that approximately 36 to 37 percent had indicated in their responses that they could not change that belief. N.T. Hearing, 12/5/05, at 12, 23. The Commonwealth responded by noting that the volume and nature of the media coverage at the time preceding jury selection could not be considered to have risen to the level where the community was saturated with inflammatory and prejudicial information. The Commonwealth averred that the correct test was not whether the prospective jurors had formed an opinion, but, rather, whether they could set aside that opinion and decide the case at trial. The Commonwealth proffered that the true question before the court was whether a fair and impartial jury could be selected in Bradford County, and it submitted that the questionnaires showed that one could be. The Commonwealth disputed Appellant's estimate of the number of jurors who had formed a fixed opinion and calculated, based on the questionnaires, that the number of jurors who had formed a fixed opinion numbered only 62 out of the 310 summoned, or roughly 20 percent. Id. at 13-15, 19. Thus, the Commonwealth maintained that a jury who had not prejudged the case could be selected from this pool of prospective jurors. After deliberation, the trial court rejected the second motion for change of venue. In his opinion, Judge Feudale described his impression of the nature of the media coverage since the first voir dire hearing as well as the role of the jury questionnaires in his decision-making process, stating: A review of the exhibits reflected in the marked articles by the Daily and Sunday Review, Sayre Morning Times, Star Gazette and Rocket Courier, along with miscellaneous other media, reflects as anticipated, a clear reduction (`cooling off) in media coverage since we have last reviewed the reporting on this case. Clearly, the more extensive coverage occurred contemporaneous to the murders, the `massive manhunt,' preliminary hearing; and the funerals attended by many law enforcement personnel out of respect to fellow law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty. Subsequent coverage was clearly not pervasive, sustained, or prejudicial. In fact, we arrived in Bradford County on Sunday night and a perusal of the local newspaper (Daily/Sunday Review) reflected no articles on the day of, or preceding jury selection. As to the jury questionnaires, such were utilized as an aid to facilitate jury selection and where appropriate, the excusal/exclusion of appropriate jurors. Such are not in and of themselves `outcome determinative,' absent a showing that a prospective juror could not be fair and impartial due to an unalterable/uncompromising fixed bias. Trial Court Opinion, filed 12/6/05, at 1-2. After the jury selection process was well underway, with approximately 108 jurors individually questioned, and ten jurors seated, Appellant renewed his request for a change of venue. Judge Feudale, who personally presided over the selection process, considered how it had transpired to that point and the relative number of challenges for cause and peremptory challenges which had been utilized. He concluded that he was satisfied with the conduct of the selection process and, consequently, denied the motion. N.T. Hearing, 12/13/05, at 4-5. Finally, Appellant made his fourth change of venue motion after the 12 regular trial jurors had been seated and two alternate jurors were selected. Due to a bomb threat phoned in to the courthouse on the morning of December 15, 2005, the trial court resumed the individual voir dire proceedings for the selection of alternate jurors in the afternoon at the office of a local district magistrate. Prior to the resumption of the voir dire, Appellant renewed his motion for change of venue predicated on the alleged influence of the bomb threat on the jury. Appellant, however, presented no evidence to indicate the threat had any impact on either the jurors who had already been empanelled, or those remaining in the jury pool, and the trial court, discerning no adverse effect on the jury by the shift in the situs of the proceedings, and, consequently, no prejudice to Appellant, denied the motion. N.T. Voir Dire, 12/15/05 AS, at 4. [19] Appellant presently argues the trial court abused its discretion in denying his motions for a change of venuecontending that this denial violated his right to a fair and impartial trial under the United States Constitution and Pennsylvania Constitution. [20] Appellant asserts that the pretrial publicity surrounding his case was sustained, pervasive, and highly prejudicial. As evidence of this assertion he refers to media coverage which he alleges contained information that he had been previously convicted of pulling a gun on police officers during an altercation in New York State, that he had a `violent history,' and that he had made a `jailhouse confession.' Appellant's Brief at 10. Appellant notes that the information regarding his prior conviction and violent history came from former District Attorney Downs and resulted in sensational, inflammatory, and emotional reporting. [21] Id. Appellant avers the ensuing media coverage was sustained and pervasive, and saturated the community. He presently renews his argument made to the trial court that, due to Bradford County's small population, this type of negative reporting was likely to have had a significant effect on any pool of prospective jurors comprised of the county's residents. Although Appellant concedes there had been an 18 month cooling off period between the time of the crime and the time of jury selection, Appellant maintains this was insufficient to dispel the prejudice of the media accounts. In support of his contention, as he did before the trial court, Appellant again relies on the written responses given by the prospective jurors when they filled out their questionnaire. Appellant alleges that 63 percent of all responding jurors indicated they believed Appellant was guilty. The total pool of prospective jurors was divided into sessions, and of the two sessions from which jurors were finally selected, panels 15 and 16, Appellant claims 40% of panel 15 and 42% of panel 16 indicated they had a fixed opinion of Appellant's guilt. Appellant argues this was an extremely high number, and suggests that this approaches the 53 percent of prospective jurors questioned in Commonwealth v. Cohen, 489 Pa. 167, 413 A.2d 1066 (1980), who were excluded from serving because they admitted, in individual voir dire, to having a fixed and unalterable opinion of the defendant's guilta percentage our Court deemed to have been a significant factor indicating a change of venue was necessary. Appellant also maintains that no significant cooling off period had occurred before jury selection and, in support, cites the testimony of one lone prospective juror, Tyrone Binford, who admitted having a conversation with his cousin, a state trooper, at a Halloween party at his church which occurred after jurors had received and returned their questionnaires. In this conversation, Binford's cousin, who had worked with the slain deputies, told him that they were easy-going friendly guys. N.T. Voir Dire, 12/13/05 MS, at 146. [22] Appellant asserts that all of these factors established that the pretrial publicity was so sustained and pervasive the trial court should have granted him his requested change of venue, and its failure to do so denied him a fair trial. The Commonwealth responds by noting that a change of venue is not warranted unless a defendant demonstrates the existence of pretrial publicity that results in actual prejudice to his ability to select an impartial jury. Appellee's Brief at 16-17 (citing Commonwealth v. Karenbauer, 552 Pa. 420, 715 A.2d 1086 (1998)). The Commonwealth acknowledges that our Court has indicated that in instances where pretrial media coverage is pervasive or inflammatory prejudice is presumed and a defendant does not have to prove actual prejudice. Id. (quoting Commonwealth v. Bridges, 563 Pa. 1, 25, 757 A.2d 859, 872 (2000)). However, the Commonwealth disputes Appellant's contention that the pretrial publicity was so widespread and inflammatory that he was not required to prove actual juror prejudice. The Commonwealth notes the trial court found that the pretrial publicity was not of such a degree that the community could be regarded as having been saturated with it. Further, the Commonwealth asserts there was a sufficient cooling off period from the time of the crime to the trial, and the trial court dealt with any potential bias on the part of prospective jurors during the voir dire process in which it inquired of all of them as to what knowledge they had of the murders gained from media sources. The Commonwealth points out that only jurors who had declared that their judgment would be unaffected by the media coverage were seated. The Commonwealth contends the process here plainly satisfied constitutional requirements. Appellee's Brief at 21. A trial court's decision on a defendant's motion for a change of trial venue based on the claimed existence of pretrial publicity prejudicial to his or her right to trial before an impartial jury is one vested within its sound discretion, and a trial court's decision to deny such a motion will not be overturned by this Court on appeal, unless the record evidences that the trial court has abused its discretion in making its ruling. Commonwealth v. Weiss, 565 Pa. 504, 514, 776 A.2d 958, 964 (2001). We have recognized that the trial court is in the best position to assess the atmosphere of the community and to judge the necessity of any requested change. Commonwealth v. Tharp, 574 Pa. 202, 219, 830 A.2d 519, 529 (2003). In reviewing the trial court decision not to grant a change of venue the focus of our inquiry is to determine whether any juror formed a fixed opinion of the defendant's guilt or innocence due to the pretrial publicity. Commonwealth v. Drumheller, 570 Pa. 117, 132, 808 A.2d 893, 902 (2002). A change in venue is compelled whenever a trial court concludes a fair and impartial jury cannot be selected from the residents of the county where the crime occurred. Weiss, at 514-15, 776 A.2d at 964. As a general rule, for a defendant to be entitled to a change of venue because of pretrial publicity, he or she must show that the publicity caused actual prejudice by preventing the empanelling of an impartial jury. Commonwealth v. Robinson, 581 Pa. 154, 195, 864 A.2d 460, 484 (2004) (quoting Drumheller, 570 Pa. at 132, 808 A.2d at 902); Karenbauer, 552 Pa. at 434, 715 A.2d at 1092. The mere existence of pretrial publicity alone, however, does not constitute actual prejudice. Simply because prospective jurors may have heard about a case through media reports does not render them incapable of jury service, since, in today's information age, where news of community events are disseminated virtually instantaneously by an ever multiplying array of delivery methods, it would be difficult to find 12 jurors who do not at least have some knowledge of the facts of an important and tragic incident like this one. Indeed, almost half a century ago, when the significant impact on people's awareness of events caused by forms of mass media such as television was just beginning to be realized, the United States Supreme Court recognized that securing a defendant's due process right to a fair trial did not require a trial court to seat a jury whose members were completely oblivious of the facts of the crime as they were reported by news sources. Thus, the high Court made clear that an individual's eligibility for jury service could not be conditioned on his or her maintenance of a hermetic state of unawareness of community and world events, reasoning: It is not required, however, that the jurors be totally ignorant of the facts and issues involved. In these days of swift, widespread and diverse methods of communication, an important case can be expected to arouse the interest of the public in the vicinity, and scarcely any of those best qualified to serve as jurors will not have formed some impression or opinion as to the merits of the case. This is particularly true in criminal cases. To hold that the mere existence of any preconceived notion as to the guilt or innocence of an accused, without more, is sufficient to rebut the presumption of a prospective juror's impartiality would be to establish an impossible standard. It is sufficient if the juror can lay aside his impression or opinion and render a verdict based on the evidence presented in court. Irvin v. Dowd, 366 U.S. 717, 722-23, 81 S.Ct. 1639, 6 L.Ed.2d 751 (1961). Consequently, the pivotal question in determining whether an impartial jury may be selected is not whether prospective jurors have knowledge of the crime being tried, or have even formed an initial opinion based on the news coverage they had been exposed to, but, rather, whether it is possible for those jurors to set aside their impressions or preliminary opinions and render a verdict solely based on the evidence presented to them at trial. ( Commonwealth v. Tressler, 526 Pa. 139, 145 n. 6, 584 A.2d 930, 933 n. 6 (1990); Commonwealth v. Hoss, 469 Pa. 195, 200-01, 364 A.2d 1335, 1338 (1976)). Nevertheless, our Court has recognized that there are some instances in which pretrial publicity can be so pervasive and inflammatory a defendant does not have to prove actual prejudice. Robinson, 581 Pa. at 195, 864 A.2d at 484. Prejudice will be presumed whenever a defendant demonstrates that the pretrial publicity: (1) was sensational, inflammatory, and slanted toward conviction, rather than factual and objective; (2) revealed the defendant's prior criminal record, if any, or referred to confessions, admissions or reenactments of the crime by the defendant; or (3) derived from official police or prosecutorial reports. Tharp, 574 Pa. at 219, 830 A.2d at 529; Karenbauer, 552 Pa. at 434, 715 A.2d at 1092. However, if the defendant proves the existence of one or more of these circumstances, a change of venue will still not be compelled unless the defendant also demonstrates that the presumptively prejudicial pretrial publicity was so extensive, sustained, and pervasive that the community must be deemed to have been saturated with it, and that there was insufficient time between the publicity and the trial for any prejudice to have dissipated. Tharp, 574 Pa. at 219, 830 A.2d at 529. With respect to the determination of whether there has been an adequate cooling off period to dissipate the effect of presumptively prejudicial media coverage to ensure that a defendant's due process right to a fair trial has been protected: [A] court must investigate what a panel of prospective jurors has said about its exposure to the publicity in question. This is one indication of whether the cooling period has been sufficient. Thus, in determining the efficacy of the cooling period, a court will consider the direct effects of publicity, something a defendant need not allege or prove. Although it is conceivable that pretrial publicity could be so extremely damaging that a court might order a change of venue no matter what the prospective jurors said about their ability to hear the case fairly and without bias, that would be a most unusual case. Normally, what prospective jurors tell us about their ability to be impartial will be a reliable guide to whether the publicity is still so fresh in their minds that it has removed their ability to be objective. The discretion of the trial judge is given wide latitude in this area. Robinson, 581 Pa. at 195-96, 864 A.2d at 484 (quoting Drumheller, 570 Pa. at 133, 808 A.2d at 902-03). [23] Our review of the record reflects at least some support for Appellant's assertion that both his statement made in jail and the existence of his prior criminal record, were part of the media coverage of this matter, as demonstrated by the statements of several prospective jurors during voir dire. In individual voir dire, two of the prospective jurors specifically mentioned hearing about Appellant's inculpatory statement in the jail through news reports. N.T. Voir Dire, 12/7/05 AS, at 142; 12/12/05 MS, at 17. Likewise, two prospective jurors told of hearing of Appellant's prior trouble with the law in which he had been arrested and convicted of some crimes, and a third juror admitted knowledge that Appellant had a run-in with the law before, in New York and Pennsylvania, N.T. Voir Dire, 12/7/05 AS, at 138, 12/13/05 MS, at 149, 12/8/05 AS, at 89-90. [24] Thus, we will assume, arguendo, that there were, in fact, media accounts which, as Appellant suggested, referenced his making of an inculpatory statement as well as the existence of his prior criminal record. Such accounts are presumptively prejudicial. Tharp, Karenbauer, supra . However, our complete review of the record reflects that the trial court took great care to establish whether this news coverage deprived Appellant of the ability to seat an impartial jury comprised of Bradford County residents. In making this determination, the trial court did not rely solely on the written answers the jurors had given in their questionnaires, nor did the court accept the opposing representations and interpretations of those written answers offered by Appellant's attorney and the prosecutor. Instead, the trial court conducted a painstaking and searching voir dire of the remaining pool of prospective jurors who were not excused by consent or for other reasons such as hardship. During this process, the trial court assiduously sought to ascertain whether any of the prospective jurors had formed a fixed and unalterable opinion about Appellant's guilt, and whether the prospective jurors could, in fact, follow its instructions on Appellant's presumption of innocence, the Commonwealth's burden of proof and, most importantly, its admonition that guilt or innocence must be based solely on the evidence presented at trial. This action was eminently in accord with our Court's previous recognition and endorsement of the principle that [t]he voir dire examination is the proper place to determine whether a defendant's public notoriety has resulted in a prospective juror's prejudice. Commonwealth v. Casper, 481 Pa. 143, 162, 392 A.2d 287, 297 (1978); see also Commonwealth v. Bachert, 499 Pa. 398, 410, 453 A.2d 931, 937 (1982) (After the voir dire a judge can determine which description of the publicity's impact is accurate; before the voir dire a judge could only have guessed.) Further, in conducting the voir dire, the trial court allowed Appellant considerable latitude in questioning all of the potential jurors in order to disclose any potential bias they may have possessed, or whether they had prejudged the case based on media reports to which they had been exposed. The trial court concluded that there had been a sufficient cooling off period after the time of the most extensive media coverage of the manhunt, preliminary hearing, and the funerals for the deputies. The Court deemed the news reporting which occurred after those events as clearly not pervasive, sustained or prejudicial, observing that just prior to jury selection it had diminished to the point of no coverage. Trial Court Opinion, 7/6/07, at 3 n. 1, 4. The trial court found that the jurors' responses during voir dire reflected the lack of any extensive, continuing influence of media attention to the case on the community, noting: An examination of the jury panel took place during the voir dire process and the publicity was not found to be fresh in jurors minds. . . . The few who were unable to decide the case based upon the evidence were appropriately removed. Id. at 4-5. Our comprehensive assessment of the substantial 16 volume, 2,377 page record of the voir dire, which took place one year and nine months after the shooting of the deputies, indicates ample support for the trial court's conclusion. Although 64 of the 138 prospective jurors questioned by counsel and the trial court admitted to having gained some knowledge of the case through media reportsi.e., reading about the case in the newspaper or watching it on televisionthe majority of those, 39 of the 64, indicated that the coverage they recalled seeing was that which occurred nearest in time to the shooting of the deputies, i.e., the coverage of the incident and the hunt for the perpetrator. Only 25 had followed the media coverage of the case throughout, and 22 of those 25 had formed no fixed opinion of guilt as a result of the coverage. Ultimately, of the 138 prospective jurors examined during voir dire, only 17, or 12 percent, stated that they had a fixed, unalterable opinion of Appellant's guilt. Because this was not an inordinately high percentage, and all jurors possessing such a fixed opinion were rightfully excused for cause, we find no merit to Appellant's claim that his right to an impartial jury was compromised by the selection of the final jury from this group. See Tharp, supra (holding no change of venue required when 30 of 100 prospective jurors (30%) questioned in voir dire had a fixed unchangeable opinion of guilt and were excused for cause); Commonwealth v. Stoltzfus, 462 Pa. 43, 54, 337 A.2d 873 (1975) (holding no change of venue necessary when 31 of 139 (22%) of prospective jurors formed opinion of defendant's guilt); Hoss, supra, 445 Pa. at 108, 283 A.2d at 64 (holding change of venue not compelled where 26 of 138 (19%) of prospective jurors expressed their belief in defendant's guilt of the crime charged). We note also that of the 12 jurors who were finally selected to serve, 4 did not read anything at all about the case or hear any reports about it on radio and television. Six others either read or heard news reports about the case in the immediate aftermath of the shooting while the intense police manhunt was underway, but they did not follow media coverage of the case thereafter. One of these 6 had even forgotten completely about the case by the time he was summoned as a juror. Only 2 had continued to intermittently follow news accounts of the case from the time Appellant was captured until the time they were summoned as potential jurors. Most critically, none of these 8 trial jurors who were exposed to media coverage indicated their exposure had caused them to form fixed, unchanging opinions of the Appellant's guilt, or that it would interfere in any way with their ability to render a verdict based solely on the evidence presented in court. The lack of substantial numbers of jurors professing fixed opinions of Appellant's guilt during voir dire, and evident diminution in media coverage over the period of time from Appellant's arrest until jury selection began, stands in stark contrast to the factual circumstances which existed in Cohen, supra . In that case, opinion polling conducted in the community by the defendant demonstrated the numbers of people who had prejudged him guilty was increasing as the time of trial approached, and a substantial majority of those polled before jury selection began, 57%, indicated their belief in the defendant's guilt. [25] The individual voir dire of the prospective jurors confirmed the polling resultsshowing that a clear majority of all jurors examined during this process, 53%, had to be excused because of their fixed, irrevocable opinion of the defendant's guilt. Cohen, 489 Pa. at 186, 413 A.2d at 1076. This increase was due to widespread and continuing newspaper and radio reports mentioning extremely inflammatory statements the district attorney made to pressure witnesses to testify against the defendant and improper statements which an assistant district attorney made about the nature of the case at a bail hearing. Specifically, during questioning of the defendant's alleged co-conspirators by detectives, the district attorney was present in the interrogation room and told each one that they would burn and that they would have the opportunity to smell burning flesh if they did not provide investigators with details of the case. Cohen, 489 Pa. at 182, 413 A.2d at 1074. The district attorney later told detectives that he wanted to stand beside Mr. Cohen when they pulled the switch. Id. Also, the assistant district attorney handling the prosecution stated at a bail hearing that bail should be denied because this was a contract killing and, also, that the Commonwealth might seek the death penalty which . . . is allowed for premeditated contract killings. Id. at 179, 413 A.2d at 1073. In ruling that a change of venue was necessary under these circumstances, our Court specifically noted that the record established that these prejudicial statements were repeatedly disseminated and widespread throughout the county at the time of trial and no cooling off period had occurred. Id. at 184, 413 A.2d at 1075. Our Court viewed the 53 percent of jurors who were excused for having prejudged the case on the merits as unprecedented in our cases. Id. at 186, 413 A.2d at 1077. Consequently, our Court concluded that the trial court abused its discretion for not granting the change of venue request, since it was evident the defendant's right to trial before an impartial jury had clearly been compromised. In the case sub judice, former District Attorney Downs made no statements in his letter to the attorney general, or otherwise, which equated in egregiousness to those uttered by the district attorney in Cohen. Additionally, former District Attorney Downs' letter was written to the attorney general in August of 2004, see supra note 18, and the hearing on Appellant's motion to remove the attorney general, at which former District Attorney Downs testified as to matters contained in the letter, was held in early May 2005. Since jury selection in this case did not begin until December 2005, and, as recounted above, only a small number of jurors expressed awareness during voir dire of Appellant's prior criminal record or statements made to the police, the trial court did not abuse its discretion under these circumstances in finding that there was a sufficient cooling off period adequate to dilute the prejudicial effects of any publicity resulting from former District Attorney Downs' remarks in the letter or his testimony at the hearing. Most importantly, none of the regular jurors who were ultimately seated, nor any of the alternate jurors selected, expressed any awareness, during voir dire, of these statements, and, thus, their judgment of the case could not have been affected by them. All of the jurors seated avowed under oath and penalty of perjury that they could decide the case based solely on the trial evidence, and that they had no preconceived or fixed opinion of Appellant's guilt. Appellant's sacrosanct constitutional right to be tried before a fair and unbiased jury was, therefore, not compromised under these particular circumstances, and we discern no abuse of discretion by the trial court in denying Appellant's motion to change the venue of his trial.