Recap of Michael Curry trial
Here’s a recap of the Curry trial, which started April 18:
MONDAY
In the first day of jury selection, prosecutors asked potential jurors whether they believe a conviction can result from a case employing no forensic evidence to link the defendant to the crime. District Attorney Julia Slater asked individuals summoned for the jury pool whether they watch TV crime shows such as “CSI” and “Forensic Files.” Her follow-up inquiries were whether prospective jurors believe the crime-solving methods portrayed and whether they think crime-lab technology can yield a “magic piece of evidence” that seals a suspect’s guilt beyond doubt.
TUESDAY
The first phase of jury selection wrapped up after a day-long session during which a 43-person jury pool was established. Superior Court Chief Judge John Allen and attorneys had to weed out potential jurors for possible bias. One woman was adamant that she already had an opinion of Curry’s guilt, and it would not change. “I don’t want to be involved in it,” she said of the murder trial.
WEDNESDAY
A 12-woman, 3-man jury was seated in the early afternoon, and Assistant District Attorney Crawford Seals told the jury the state’s case against Curry was circumstantial. The first witness was Police Chief Ricky Boren, a detective at the time of the homicides, who described the gruesome crime scene.
THURSDAY
Testimony revealed glass in a rear door to the Curry house was broken from the inside-out, and the door was not opened afterward. With a side kitchen door to the driveway blocked by an overturned trash container, that means the killer had only one door to leave through -- the home’s front door. A state pathologist said a medical examiner’s estimate Ann Curry died at 2:30-3 p.m. was hours too late because the house was so hot her body would not have cooled quickly.
FRIDAY
Bernice Johnson testified that she cannot pinpoint the time her daughter Ann and grandchildren left her 4416 Fairview Drive home for the 7-minute ride to Rockhurst Drive. She remembered only that the 11 a.m. to noon TV show “The Price Is Right” was on while she was baby-sitting Ryan, and it was still on when she turned off the TV to play with him. Ann returned from a shopping trip with Erika shortly thereafter, stayed 10 or 11 minutes, and left saying she wanted to go home and give the kids a nap. In previous accounts Johnson has estimated Ann left at 12:30, between 12:15 and 12:30, and no later than 12:45 p.m.
This story was originally published April 26, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Recap of Michael Curry trial."