Another reason for people to move into the county
Potential jurors dismissed after talk of threat "Taking out jurors" allegedly overheard in attempted murder case
By PAUL NELSON
Updated 06:46 p.m., Tuesday, March 6, 2012
SCHENECTADY — The first day of the trial of two young men charged with attempted murder in the shooting of an 11-year-old boy and his brother ended abruptly after a potential juror told the judge he overheard a supporter of one of the defendants mention "taking out jurors," according to an attorney in the case.
"I don't think they were making realistic threats that they were going to hurt anyone," said Mark Gaylord, who is representing Kody Pierce, 20. Although he dismissed it as bluster from young people who "weren't using any discretion," Gaylord still asked that the entire group of potential jurors be dismissed.
Pierce and co-defendant Kirel Prince, 18, are accused of shooting Nasjarah Pulliam, 11, and his 19-year-old brother, Shaune Daniels, in broad daylight on June 23, 2010 in Hamilton Hill.
The two men are charged with attempted murder, first-degree assault and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.
Prince, represented by Lee Greenstein, faces two additional gun charges related to a July 2010 incident when police allegedly found a gun in a house where officers located him.
Pulliam, who is now 12, was hit in the head and stumbled into nearby Jerry Burrell Park while Daniels was struck in the back and collapsed after fleeing a short distance away.
Authorities said the shooting stemmed from a lingering dispute between Prince and Daniels. On the day of the shooting, Daniels was with his younger brother who was apparently caught in the crossfire. They have both recovered from their injuries, police said.
On Tuesday, the lawyers were about an hour into questioning potential jurors in the process known as voir dire when Judge Michael Coccoma met with them in chambers. The judge told them he had been notified that some potential jurors had complained to security officers that they were being distracted by four of Prince's supporters, who were apparently talking loud enough for others to hear their remarks, Gaylord said.
He said that one of the potential jurors said they observed the group counting the number of blacks among the jury pool. Both defendants are black. The defense attorney said when the lawyers returned to the court, Coccoma asked those who had been distracted to come to the bench where he asked them further questions.
The judge then made a general inquiry to all the prospective jurors about whether they had any concerns about anything they heard about the trial, said Gaylord.
It was then that one of the potential jurors raised his hand and later revealed in chambers that a group of three males and a female had said something about "taking out jurors" as the potential jurors were lined up outside waiting to go through courthouse security, Gaylord said. Gaylord said he then made a motion for the judge to dismiss the entire panel. The judge agreed and everyone was sent home around 1:30 p.m.
The lawyers will return to court with another group of potential jurors Friday.
The family of Daniels and Pulliam was struck by tragedy in December when their sister, Latoya Ebron, was stabbed to death during a dispute with a woman over music.
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http://www.timesunion.com/loca.....10.php#ixzz1oOOOV5lx
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