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BOISE, Idaho — Jury selection continued on the second day of the Lori Vallow Daybell trial, with discussion on a potential sequestration of the jury. If the judge decides to sequester the jury, this means they would stay in a hotel with limited access to other people, and to radio and television news.
The day started with around 45 potential jurors, who were brought in by groups of about 15.
They were each asked if they know about the case and Vallow Daybell's charges.
Vallow Daybell is charged with seven felonies. She and her husband Chad Daybell are accused of murdering her two children, J.J. Vallow and Tylee Ryan. Vallow Daybell is also accused of conspiring to murder Daybell's late wife, Tammy Daybell. Vallow Daybell has pleaded not guilty.
The court wants 42 potential jurors approved for a pool, that it would then narrow down to 18 jurors needed for the trial: 12 trial jurors and six alternates.
The day began with 17 juror positions already filled from Monday's jury selection, with 25 left to fill the needed 42. Three jury pools were brought throughout the course of Tuesday to be questioned about their ability to serve as jurors for the trial.
The prosecution zeroed in on things like circumstantial evidence, and what it means when it comes to believing someone committed a crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
"Would you be able to convict someone of murder, even if the state couldn't show you exactly how they died?" Smith asked the jurors to ponder.
Jurors were also questioned about prior knowledge of the trial, any opinions formed about Vallow Daybell's guilt or innocence, and possible interfering circumstances that would prevent them from serving.
"If the defendant elects not to testify, you can't hold that against me or my client," Jim Archibald said, to one group of jurors.
The defense and prosecution team questioned jurors individually about their specific knowledge and exposure to the case, including consuming news and what they've heard.
Based on the answers, they wondered if the jurors were impartial.
"Having a juror in your state of mind ... do you believe you could set all that aside and start with Lori with a clean slate?" Archibald asked one woman.
Even though she answered, "Yes," she was dismissed for implied bias based on pre-trial knowledge — as were nearly half of Tuesday's jurors.
There was discussion at one point of the possibility of the jury being sequestered and some jurors were asked if that would be possible; however, Judge Steven Boyce has not issued a decision.
By the end of Tuesday, 12 jurors were added, making for a total of 30. The trial will head into its third day in search of 12 more jurors for the pool, before the peremptory challenges begin.
Boyce did not make a ruling over whether JJ's grandparents, Kay and Larry Woodcock, would be allowed to sit in on the trial. They were expected to arrive in Boise Tuesday evening.
John Prior, Chad Daybell's attorney, was present at the trial Monday and Tuesday.
