Post by CCADP on Aug 15, 2005 6:11:24 GMT -5
Severs trial jury selection begins
Monday, August 15, 2005
By COLLEEN P. MOORE
Staff Writer
BRIDGETON -- Jury selection begins today for the trial of William Severs Jr., the 43-year-old Pittsgrove Township man accused of murdering his estranged girlfriend in a sniper-style shooting over three years ago.
The jury selection could last as long as two weeks, Superior Court Judge Timothy Farrell noted previously.
Tina Labriola, 35, died on Jan. 10, 2002, after being shot in the back outside a friend's home less than a year after she had filed for a restraining order against Severs.
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Farrell will be doing the selection, but due to gag orders, little information was released about the proceedings that begin this morning.
A large crowd of potential jurors are expected to jam the courthouse, but officials are trying to prevent the same happening to the parking lot.
Kelly Law, assistant trial court administrator, said the largest problem that will be faced is the issue of parking at the courthouse.
"Parking is tight there to begin with," Law said, adding that people will be parking elsewhere and they will be bused to the court.
She could not say how many people would be there or where they were being bused from.
"That's about all the information available," she said.
Andrew Caffrey, a Bridgeton lawyer, said Friday that his daughter was picked as a potential juror in the Severs trial.
In the letter to potential jurors, he said they have been advised to park in the Acme parking lot in Upper Deerfield, where buses will pick them up.
Severs was indicted for first-degree murder and other related offenses in connection with Labriola's death and he faces the death penalty if convicted.
Several pieces of evidence against Severs were used during the pre-trial hearings and will be allowed to be presented before the selected jurors.
Joseph Labriola, Tina Labriola's spouse, testified about a long phone conversation he had with Severs two years before the shooting in which Severs continuously said that he "had to kill" her.
Several similar testimonies, where witnesses recalled previous "bad acts" committed by Severs before Labriola's death will be presented during the trial, Farrell previously decided.
Included in those testimonies are a friend of Severs and a Vineland Police officer who said that Severs threatened to shoot Labriola.
A Remington .30-caliber hunting rifle was also found within 100 yards of the scene of the shooting with a palm print left on its grip traced back to Severs.
William Creamer, Severs' best friend of over 20 years, testified that he gave that rifle to Severs two years prior.
Other evidence includes several witnesses who said they saw Severs in the area of the crime scene that night, but it is not certain what evidence will be used by the prosecution at the upcoming trial.
www.nj.com/
Monday, August 15, 2005
By COLLEEN P. MOORE
Staff Writer
BRIDGETON -- Jury selection begins today for the trial of William Severs Jr., the 43-year-old Pittsgrove Township man accused of murdering his estranged girlfriend in a sniper-style shooting over three years ago.
The jury selection could last as long as two weeks, Superior Court Judge Timothy Farrell noted previously.
Tina Labriola, 35, died on Jan. 10, 2002, after being shot in the back outside a friend's home less than a year after she had filed for a restraining order against Severs.
Advertisement
Farrell will be doing the selection, but due to gag orders, little information was released about the proceedings that begin this morning.
A large crowd of potential jurors are expected to jam the courthouse, but officials are trying to prevent the same happening to the parking lot.
Kelly Law, assistant trial court administrator, said the largest problem that will be faced is the issue of parking at the courthouse.
"Parking is tight there to begin with," Law said, adding that people will be parking elsewhere and they will be bused to the court.
She could not say how many people would be there or where they were being bused from.
"That's about all the information available," she said.
Andrew Caffrey, a Bridgeton lawyer, said Friday that his daughter was picked as a potential juror in the Severs trial.
In the letter to potential jurors, he said they have been advised to park in the Acme parking lot in Upper Deerfield, where buses will pick them up.
Severs was indicted for first-degree murder and other related offenses in connection with Labriola's death and he faces the death penalty if convicted.
Several pieces of evidence against Severs were used during the pre-trial hearings and will be allowed to be presented before the selected jurors.
Joseph Labriola, Tina Labriola's spouse, testified about a long phone conversation he had with Severs two years before the shooting in which Severs continuously said that he "had to kill" her.
Several similar testimonies, where witnesses recalled previous "bad acts" committed by Severs before Labriola's death will be presented during the trial, Farrell previously decided.
Included in those testimonies are a friend of Severs and a Vineland Police officer who said that Severs threatened to shoot Labriola.
A Remington .30-caliber hunting rifle was also found within 100 yards of the scene of the shooting with a palm print left on its grip traced back to Severs.
William Creamer, Severs' best friend of over 20 years, testified that he gave that rifle to Severs two years prior.
Other evidence includes several witnesses who said they saw Severs in the area of the crime scene that night, but it is not certain what evidence will be used by the prosecution at the upcoming trial.
www.nj.com/