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MATTHEW SHEPARD KILLING 1st round of jury selection complete in McKinney trial LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) - Forty-eight jury finalists have been chosen for a second trial in the beating death of a gay college freshman. Attorneys plan to select a jury Oct. 25 to decide the fate of Aaron McKinney, accused of murdering Matthew Shepard. McKinney, 22, could face the death penalty if convicted of first-degree murder. He is also charged with aggravated robbery and kidnapping with intent to inflict bodily injury or terrorize the victim. Opening statements by attorneys are scheduled to begin immediately after the panel of 12 jurors and four alternates is chosen. Attorneys picked their finalists a week ahead of schedule and could have begun trial a week early, but a hometown college football game has left no motel rooms open for sequestered jurors. Also, notifying everyone involved in the trial would have been difficult, said court spokesman Allen Johnson. As a result, attorneys will have an extra week to prepare for trial. "There will be an additional hearing (next week) on whatever issues there are that anyone wants to bring up," Johnson said. "Just to make sure we've got everything done." By selecting the finalists, attorneys avoided having to bring in a third pool that would require another three- to four-hour public session of questioning followed by another two days of individual, closed-door interviews. A fourth pool was also standing by. Thursday and Friday's jury selection was held in a closed courtroom to allow prospects to privately discuss issues such as personal hardships and feelings on the death penalty. Attorneys have subpoenaed 110 witnesses, though not all are expected to testify. Copyright 1999 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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