Bill Cosby, center, arrives for jury selection in his sexual assault case at the Allegheny County Courthouse, Monday, May 22, 2017, in Pittsburgh. The case is set for trial June 5 in suburban Philadelphia.
Hundreds of potential jurors have been called to a Pittsburgh courthouse as the search for panel that will decide comedian Bill Cosby’s sex abuse trial gets underway.
A dozen jurors and six alternates will be selected — then shipped across the state to serve in what is expected to be a two-week trial beginning June 5 on allegations the entertainer molested a Temple University basketball team manager at his home near Philadelphia in 2004.
Here’s what you need to know about jury selection:
Q: Why is the jury being picked in Pittsburgh?
A: Cosby’s lawyers sought an outside jury because the case had been a flashpoint in the 2015 race for Montgomery County district attorney. Former prosecutor Bruce Castor, the Republican candidate, had declined to charge Cosby a decade earlier. First Assistant District Attorney Kevin Steele, a Democrat whose office had reopened the case, attacked Castor over the Cosby case in campaign ads.
This Feb. 7, 2003, file photo shows the Allegheny County Courthouse in Pittsburgh. A crucial phase of entertainer Bill Cosby’s sex assault trial starts Monday, May 22, 2017, when lawyers gather in Pittsburgh to pick the jury that will decide if the actor drugged and molested Andrea Constand, a Temple University women’s basketball team manager, at his home near Philadelphia in 2004.
Q: What will it be like to serve on the jury?
A: In a rare move, the jury will be sequestered near the courthouse in Norristown, some 300 miles away from their homes. Court officers will keep close tabs on their cellphone use, TV time and reading material, given the huge media coverage the case will bring. The trial is expected to last about two weeks, but could go longer if rebuttal witnesses are called or the jury struggles to reach a verdict.
Bill Cosby, center, arrives for jury selection in his sexual assault case at the Allegheny County Courthouse, Monday, May 22, 2017, in Pittsburgh.
Q: What type of jurors will the defense seek?
A: The defense will likely seek jurors who are black, male, older and perhaps celebrity worshippers, in the view of jury consultant Howard Varinksy, who advised prosecutors in the murder trials of Scott Peterson, who was convicted of killing his pregnant wife; Timothy McVeigh; and others. Black jurors may be more willing to doubt police and prosecutors, while older jurors may blame the victim for being in the married Cosby’s home, he said. Celebrity worshippers may be sympathetic or try to form a connection to the star, relating to the fact they once saw them in a store or they come from the same hometown or have children the same age.
In this combination of file photos, entertainer Bill Cosby pauses during an interview in Washington on Nov. 6, 2014, and Andrea Constand poses for a photo in Toronto on Aug. 1, 1987.
Q: How about the prosecution?
A: Younger jurors may have more modern views of sexual assault cases, especially those, like Cosby’s, that involve acquaintance situations or a delay in contacting police. Varinsky expects about one in four jurors to say they or someone close to them has been the victim of a sexual assault. Those individuals would likely be dismissed by the judge.
Bill Cosby arrives for jury selection in his sexual assault case at the Allegheny County Courthouse, Monday, May 22, 2017, in Pittsburgh.
Q: How much leeway does each side have to pick jurors?
A: Either side can ask the judge to strike a potential juror for cause, without it counting against them. That might include jurors who admit having a biased view of the case or have a hardship — a medical condition, family obligation or financial or job situation — that prevents them from serving. After that, each side can strike seven jurors and three alternates without cause, simply because they fear they would hurt their sides.
Bill Cosby arrives for jury selection in his sexual assault case at the Allegheny County Courthouse, Monday, May 22, 2017, in Pittsburgh.
Q: Will the jurors be identified?
A: Judge Steven O’Neill plans to keep the jurors’ names private. However, the press will be covering the proceedings, reporting on both the nature of the arguments over jury selection and the willingness of people to serve in the high-profile case.
Bill Cosby arrives for jury selection in his sexual assault case at the Allegheny County Courthouse, Monday, May 22, 2017, in Pittsburgh.
Q: What should I watch for?
- Jurors too eager to serve in a celebrity case. Some may even hope to write a book afterward, if past cases are any guide.
- Can the parties find 18 people without strong feelings about the case or Cosby’s career? Do they express fond memories of benevolent TV dad Cliff Huxtable or cartoon character Fat Albert? Or are they bitter about Cosby’s scolding of the young black community?
- Is the jury pool familiar with the scores of other Cosby accusers? Are people being truthful if they say they’re not, given the widespread media coverage?
- What’s the final breakdown in terms of men/women; old/young; black/white/other? gay/straight? (Cosby is 79, black, long-married, a father of five, American and a career entertainer. Trial accuser Andrea Constand is 43, white, single, gay, Canadian and a basketball professional-turned-massage therapist.)
- Will politics come into play, subtly or not? Given sex assault allegations raised against President Donald Trump, and his vulgar comments caught on tape about grabbing women, will lawyers try to glean the jurors’ political leanings?
In this Dec. 31, 2015, file photo, Andrea Constand walks her dogs in Toronto, Canada.
Q: Will jurors hear from Cosby during the trial?
A: Cosby told an interviewer this past week that he does not expect to testify, given his fear of wading into trouble while trying to be truthful during cross-examination.
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