Before we begin, please be advised that this episode contains graphic descriptions of violence

as presented during the trial. Please take care while listening. It's Wednesday, January 15th,

2025. By now, we, the jurors, are moving into the routine of our new job.

The lobby call at our hotel has become a steady expectation.

And once we're in our jury room at the courthouse, everyone just kind of moves into their

spot.

I think by this point, we had all gotten a taste for the task at hand.

There was no exiting this scenario.

It was just time to move in and do the job.

It was only day three of the trial, after all.

A knock at the door signaled it was time.

We gathered our things, lined up, and took the solemn walk across the hallway into the courtroom.

The door of the courtroom

held open by one of our deputies as we stepped inside. Everyone is standing as we make our way

into the jury box. I make it to my seat in the front row, third chair in. I mentioned in a previous

episode that 14 of the blue office-style jury chairs were bolted to the ground, seven in the

front row and seven in the back. But there were 16 jurors sitting through this trial. The four

alternates wouldn't be selected until just before the deliberation phase. So that meant two extra

chairs had to be added to accommodate all 16 of us. A matching,

freestanding blue office chair on wheels sat at the end of each row. The back row's extra

chair stayed put throughout the trial. But the front row, now that was a different story.

The way the jury box was designed meant that the extra chair had to be added after we all took our seats.

...