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2ND TRY AT JURY SELECTION BEGINS IN GEORGIA HOT CAR DEATH

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BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) -- A second attempt at jury selection in the trial of a metro Atlanta man charged with killing his toddler son began Monday, at a new courthouse 275 miles (440 kilometers) from the suburban parking lot where the child died in the back seat of a hot SUV.

Despite the long-distance relocation of the trial, most potential jurors questioned by the judge said they not only had heard about the case against Justin Ross Harris, but had also formed opinions about his guilt or innocence.

Harris, 35, is charged with murder in the June 2014 death of his 22-month-old son, Cooper. Nearly three weeks of efforts to find an impartial jury in Cobb County fell apart in May, with the judge agreeing to move the case because of pretrial publicity.

Superior Court Judge Mary Staley Clark reconvened the trial Monday in coastal Glynn County, where about 250 people were summoned to jury duty. Two weeks have been set aside to pick a jury.

The judge began questioning the first group of 36 potential jurors Monday afternoon. Of those, 27 said they had previously seen news stories or other information about Harris' case. And 19 panelists, just over half, said they had expressed or formed an opinion about Harris' guilt or innocence.

However, when asked by the judge to stand if they were biased against Harris or did not feel "perfectly impartial" between prosecutors and defense attorneys in the case, all of the 36 possible jurors remained seated.

Meanwhile, 34 potential jurors asked the judge to be excused from the case - for reasons ranging from painful health problems to vacation plans falling in the middle of the case.

Clark did not immediately announce rulings on most of those requests. Those who were dismissed included a man complaining of excruciating back pain, a funeral home owner who said he had a sudden influx of business and a former police officer who works security at the federal courthouse.

Those who will remain in the pool for possible inclusion on the final jury include a father-to-be who said he expects his child to be born this week, a man whose daughter is getting married this weekend in Virginia, and a doctor who works in the emergency room of a rural hospital that typically has just one physician working every 12-hour shift.

The judge granted each of those possible jurors time to attend to affairs away from the courthouse. But they were all ordered to return before a final jury gets seated.

Harris, who moved to Georgia in 2012 from Alabama, is charged with murder. Prosecutors say he intentionally left his son to die at a time when Harris was unhappy in his marriage and looking for relationships with other women. Defense attorneys say the death was a tragic accident.

 

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