Baumhammers Test Jury Gives Attorneys Hope

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Allegheny County Judge Jeffrey Manning will hear arguments on March 21 on whether the trial or jury selection for accused mass shooting suspect Richard Baumhammers should be moved to another county.

The 35-year-old immigration attorney faces a possible death penalty when he goes to trial April 9. Baumhammers faces 25 charges, including five counts of murder, in a series of shootings that spanned several towns in Allegheny and Beaver Counties on April 28.

The Mt. Lebanon man's case received extensive local media coverage, raising the question of whether a change of venue would be necessary in order to find jurors who had not heard about the incident.

During a pretrial hearing Thursday at the Allegheny County Courthouse, 40 out of 110 test jurors told Judge Jeffrey Manning that they could put aside what they had heard and read about the case and keep an open mind if chosen to serve in Baumhammers' trial.

A private investigator said that local television and radio stations, newspapers and The Associated Press have churned out more than 1,100 stories on the Baumhammers case since the shootings.

Although the majority said that they had already decided Baumhammers' guilt or innocence, attorneys involved in the case saw a ray of hope.

"There were a number of jurors who said they could be fair and impartial and that's what I have been saying all along," Baumhammers' attorney, William Difenderfer, said. "I am optimistic that we can pick (jurors) here."

"The significance is that there is some hope that a jury could be picked from Allegheny County," assistant district attorney Ed Borkowski said.

A decision to try Baumhammers in Allegheny County will also depend upon how each side views the findings of private investigator James Smith, who was hired by the court to track the extent and content of media coverage about the case.

Baumhammers remains in Allegheny County Jail.

Previous Stories:

• March 1, 2001: Judge Hires Detective For Baumhammers' Case
• February 9, 2001: Baumhammers Plans Insanity Defense
• November 18, 2000: Attorney: Baumhammers Can Get Fair Trial
• September 16, 2000: Baumhammers Ruled Competent To Stand Trial
• May 1, 2000: Manifesto Found In Home Of Suspect
• April 29, 2000: Suspect Arraigned In Shooting Spree