PITTSBURGH -- Attorneys began jury selection Thursday in the fraud trial of celebrity pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht, nearly two years after a federal grand jury indicted him on charges that he used his former government staff to benefit his famous, multimillion-dollar private practice.

Video: Jury Selection Begins In Famed Pittsburgh Pathologist's Trial
Video: Bob Mayo Blogs From The Courthouse

Sixty people in the jury pool were summoned to fill out 25-page questionnaires designed to reveal any biases or connections they may have to parties in the case. The surveys also asked for information about personal preferences the attorneys believed might be relevant.

Other questions included whether the potential jurors had been a member of a political organization or whether they formed opinions of Wecht or the charges against him in the case.

Among the more unusual questions, jurors were asked to name their favorite TV shows and movies, and to describe any bumper stickers on their cars.

Wecht's lawyers' list of potential defense witnesses includes his wife, Sigrid Wecht, County Executive Dan Onorato, former county executive Jim Roddey and Sister Grace Ann Geibel, president of Carlow College.

Wecht, 76, resigned from his position as the Allegheny County medical examiner after being indicted on Jan. 20, 2006.

Wecht is famous for investigating or consulting on the deaths of Elvis Presley, JonBenet Ramsey and others, and remains a pundit and expert on high-profile cases. He also conducts autopsies-for-hire in several Pennsylvania counties.

Lawyers were expected to pick the jury through next week at least, with pools of 60 jurors already summoned to appear Monday and Wednesday.

Because of a federal appeal brought by Pittsburgh media outlets, the names of the jurors questioned must be made public before trial testimony begins Jan. 28.

U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab originally wanted to seat an anonymous jury to protect their impartiality in the high-profile case. He later agreed to permit attorneys only to know the names of the final 40 in the jury pool so they could eliminate anyone connected to Wecht's past cases.

That decision was successfully appealed, though.

As a result, Schwab has ordered the jury administrator to prepare by Jan. 17 a list of jurors excused for hardship or other reasons before jury selection began. The administrator must release the names of other jurors questioned -- including those chosen to hear the case -- as soon as possible before the jury is sworn in.

---

Related Links:
More County News

Get RSS | E-Mail Alerts

---