RALEIGH — Of the original 12 prospective jurors in the trial against Grant Ruffin Hays — who's accused of murdering ex-girlfriend Laura Ackerson in July 2011 — two have been excused and another will be allowed to leave today.
Jury selection for the trial began Monday as Wake County Superior Court Judge Donald Stephens sorted out those who have applicable circumstances to excuse them from serving on the jury in this trial from those who will be able to go the distance until the verdict.
Stephens said he expects the case to last about three weeks.
In his questioning of the jurors, Stephens found one woman who is in the process of staging a large business conference in Chicago at the end of September. Because of the undue burden it would place on her job performance, and those of her colleagues, she was excused from the trial and allowed to return to the jury pool.
One man, the first Juror No. 6, said he couldn't be objective on the matter of Hayes' guilt or innocence because of how the juror reacted to initial television news reports about the murder. Stephens investigated the juror's stance further, and the man reiterated that he had predetermined thoughts on the matter and couldn't serve impartially. He also went back to the jury pool.
Juror No. 12, a woman originally from Hong Kong who moved to Raleigh 17 years ago, said she was concerned her moderate understanding of the English language would hinder her ability to understand witnesses' testimony.
Stephens kept her with the potential jurors to start out, but after answering some questions from Assistant District Attorney Rebecca Holt, the court revisited the issue. Once the jurors left the room, Stephens called the attorneys over for a bench conference.
Between them, it was decided the woman's lack of English proficiency would prove to be a problem, and Stephens said he would excuse her from serving when court reconvenes today.
Regarding objections to possible testimony, one man — who said he has a master's in Bible counseling — said he would have a problem with accepting a psychologist as an expert witness because he has an issue with the science behind the discipline.
Jury selection resumes today at 9:30 a.m. in the Wake County Justice Center.
Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 and Wes.Wolfe@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter @WolfeReports.