More jurors screened for Mack trial
The pool of potential jurors in the Darren Mack murder trial grew slowly Wednesday as attorneys questioned people about their opinions on mental illness and divorce.
Five more people passed through the initial round of questioning, including a former newspaper editor and a former nurse who said she'd divorced her husband after he dealt with drug addiction. That brought the total of possible jurors to 15 at the end of the third day of jury selection, roughly half of those needed to complete the first phase of the process.
Mack, 46, is accused of murdering his wife, Charla, in June 2006 and shooting the Reno family court judge who had handled their contentious divorce. The case received national headlines after Judge Chuck Weller was shot sniper-style through the third-floor window of his chambers at a downtown Reno courthouse. Weller has since recovered.
Mack became one of the FBI's most wanted fugitives when he was on the run for 11 days after the crimes. He was found in Mexico.
The case was moved to Las Vegas earlier this month after Judge Douglas Herndon declared he did not believe Mack, a wealthy pawn shop owner, could get a fair trial in Reno.
Defense lawyers David Chesnoff and Scott Freeman, working off a questionnaire, on Wednesday questioned potential jurors about their past spouses, the nature of their divorces and their opinion on mental illness.
One woman, the wife of a casino executive, was excused from the pool after telling the court she was not certain she could accept a not guilty by reason of insanity defense.
Mack has pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity to murder and attempted murder charges, but he has not identified which plea went with which charge.
Mack's attorneys have said they do not know whether their client will testify in his own defense. He could face life in prison if convicted.
Mack sat through the day's proceedings, occasionally asking a question of his lawyers and a consultant hired to help select the jury.
The group of about 200 possible jurors will be cut to 35 and then again to 15, with three jurors acting as alternates.
