More than 800 individuals received summons from a Texas trial court as potential jurors in the high-profile murder trial of Eddie Ray Routh, the 27-year-old veteran accused of killing former Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle.
About half of them showed up on Thursday and filled out questionnaires to help lawyers sift through the pool of individuals and slim it down to 12 impartial individuals who will comprise the jury. Erath County District Clerk Wanda Pringle says 175 people would normally be summoned. However, because of the victim's popularity, the district court expects lawyers will need to choose from a larger pool.
Authorities say Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield took Routh, an Iraqi war veteran from Lancaster, to a shooting range at Rough Creek Lodge, a resort outside Glen Rose in Erath County, just 70 miles southwest of Fort Worth. Routh was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), so his mother contacted Kyle to help Routh deal with his psychological problems.
Shortly before the shootings, Routh was reportedly confined at a mental institution. He is accused of having shot Kyle and Littlefield before stealing the former's truck to drive to the home of his sister, who says Routh confessed to the crimes. The troubled veteran is now in the custody of the Erath County jail and is on a $3 million bond. His lawyers plan to argue that he is not guilty on account of insanity.
The trial, which is expected to begin on Feb. 11, will take place in the small, usually sleepy town of Stephenville. Of the nearly 500 individuals that showed up, District Judge Jason Cashon already dismissed 21 people in the morning for extensive exposure to the murder case in the news. Half a dozen of those dismissed have already decided that Routh is guilty.
One of them is 63-year-old Joe McCartney, a former Marine who, like Kyle, served as a sniper during the Vietnam War. McCartney says he, like Routh, also suffered from PTSD and bouts of suicidal thoughts. However, he doesn't buy what Routh's lawyers claim as insanity.
"It has been easy as hell," McCartney tells CBS Local affiliate DFW of his treatment for PTSD. "The VA has given me everything as far as medicine and psychiatric help. And it's out there for any veteran."
Routh's attorneys have filed a request to change the trial's venue and schedule. Lawyer Warren St. John says he fears his client may not face a fair trial in Erath County, or anywhere in Texas for that matter, especially as the trial is scheduled just days after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott declared Feb. 2 as Chris Kyle Day in honor of the Marine. Those requests, however, were rejected.
"The people here are objective, conscientious and diverse, just like they are everywhere else," says writer and rancher Jon Koonsman. "We've got academics, professionals, and blue-collar workers."
Former Texas judge Mike Snipes says it doesn't matter where Routh's trial will be held, since the name Chris Kyle has become recognizable practically in every corner of the United States.
"Ultimately whether the trial is in Stephenville, The Bronx, or Beverly Hills, people are people and you're supposed to be able to find fair and impartial jurors wherever the case may be," Snipes says.
