LIVE UPDATES | Day 2 of jury selection underway in Chad Daybell case

LIVE UPDATES FROM THE CHAD DAYBELL TRIAL

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1:05 p.m. Court is dismissed for the day while the attorneys and judge review questionaries. Proceedings will resume tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. Join me tonight on ‘Courtroom Insider’ at 6:30 MDT where I’ll discuss the case and have an interview with ‘Dateline NBC’ correspondent Keith Morrison.

1:03 p.m. The jurors picked today will now be brought in to be passed. There are four in the group.

1 p.m. The woman says she is “honest to a fault” and would do the “best she could” but it would be challenging to be fair to Daybell. Batey moves to have her dismissed. Prior agrees. Boyce grants the motion to strike and the woman is released.

12:58 p.m. The woman says she can be fair and objective. Batey now asking about media coverage of the case. The woman has read and seen things about the case but would be able to put it out of her mind.

12:57 p.m. Boyce tells the juror she can discuss the issue privately – not in a public forum. She says she’s ok to talk publicly. The burning incident happened over 30 years ago. The woman says that incident may make it hard for her to look at graphic photos during the trial.

12:56 p.m. New juror is in the courtroom. This is the woman whose brother-in-law was burned. Batey will be asking questions on behalf of the state. She asks the lady about the incident. She put the fire out.

12:55 p.m. Prior asks a few questions, has no issues and the juror advances. We now have 20 in the pool.

12:51 p.m. The man supports the death penalty but wouldn’t automatically impose it – it would depend on the circumstances of the case. He says he would follow all court instructions regarding the death penalty. Prosecutors have no questions for the man, Prior does.

12:50 p.m. New juror walks in. No issues about media coverage or hardship. Now they will discuss death penalty with the man.

12:46 p.m. Wood moves to have the juror excused based on his answers about opinions formed on the case. Prior agrees to have the juror dismissed. Boyce sustains the strike and the man is dismissed.

12:42 p.m. The man recalls hearing talk radio programs about the case but doesn’t know which particular shows. He saw the media some years ago and has not kept up on the case.

12:40 p.m. The next juror walks in. He is the police officer.

12:36 p.m. Prior questions the juror about the death penalty. He motions to have the juror dismissed for cause due to her views on the death penalty. Batey responds that the woman has said she can be fair and follow instructions. Boyce overrules the objection and the juror moves forward. The pool is now at 19.

12:35 p.m. The juror says she will follow the instructions given by the court. Batey now questioning the juror. The woman says she will consider the facts of the case before imposing death penalty or life in prison.

12:32 p.m. The woman strongly believes in the death penalty. Boyce asks if she believes the death penalty should be given in every single murder case. She says no – it depends on the murder.

12:30 p.m. Prior motions to have the juror dismissed based on her media consumption and the fact she said she had formed opinions on the case. Batey objects to the dismissal. Boyce denies the objection. Death penalty will now be discussed.

12:26 p.m. Prior asks the woman if she has watched ‘Dateline.’ She says she was very interested in the case when it first broke and she’s always wanted to be in law enforcement. She works at IDOC – Idaho Department of Correction. Prior tells the woman she’s going to have to block out all her social media, friends, etc. and not talk about the case.

12:24 p.m. The juror says she’s the type of person who wants to know the facts, see evidence and know the whole picture before she comes up with an answer or solution. She says she formed an opinion about Lori Vallow. Batey asks the juror if she understands that Daybell is presumed innocent. The juror says she does.

12:21 p.m. Next juror walks in. Batey begins questioning her about media exposure to the case. The lady says when the case first started, she had “a lot” of exposure to the media and then it died down. Then she started a job where the case was brought up a lot by others.

12:20 p.m. Prior questioning the juror further about his views on the death penalty. Boyce denies the request to have the juror dismissed and he remains in the pool. We now have 18 potential jurors.

12:15 p.m. Wixom follows up with the juror about his views on the death penalty. The juror says he is opposed to the death penalty in all cases so it’s difficult for him to imagine to be in situations where the death penalty might be appropriate. Wixom moves to have the juror dismissed due to his views on the death penalty.

12:10 p.m. The juror says he opposes the death penalty and Boyce questions the man about some of the answers on his questionnaire. He was confused by one of the questions about death penalty and did not provide an accurate answer. He clarifies that he is strongly opposed to the death penalty and would have a difficult time imposing it regardless of the facts of the case.

12:05 p.m. New juror walks in. Wixom has a question for him about hardship. The man wrote on his form that he anxiety and would need breaks. The juror says he frequently needs breaks to process information. He believes the structure of what he has experienced so far is manageable.

12:02 p.m. Wood moves to dismiss the juror. Prior agrees. Boyce excuses the juror.

12:00 p.m. New juror takes a seat. Wood will be questioning him. The man wrote on his questionnaire that he knows about the Lori Vallow case, conviction, etc. Wood asks if that will shape his opinion about presumption of innocence for Chad. “I think it’s possible. Yeah,” the man responds.

11:56 a.m. Batey continues to question the juror and requests to have her dismissed due to media exposure. Prior concurs and Boyce agrees to excuse the woman.

11:52 a.m. The juror feels she can compartmentalize and not let what she has seen affect her judgment. She says it’s been a while since she’s seen the programs about the case.

11:50 a.m. Next juror is brought in. The woman has seen some documentaries and news reports about the case including the Netflix doc about Lori Vallow. Batey is questioning the juror.

11:49 a.m. Prosecutors and Prior have no questions for the juror. He advances. We now have 17 in the potential pool. We need 50 for the defense and prosecutors to begin preemptory challenges.

11:46 a.m. The man supports the death penalty. He says he can be fair and believes when there is a first-degree murder, death penalty should be considered. During these questions, Daybell stares at the judge and not at the juror.

11:44 a.m. Prior moves to dismiss the juror for cause. State objects to the motion and says the juror has stated he understands the risk and hardship of serving on a jury. Wixom says there isn’t a cause to excuse the juror. Boyce asks the juror some follow-up questions and overrules the request for dismissal. Boyce will now discuss the death penalty.

11:41 a.m. The juror is concerned about being sequestered because he wouldn’t have access to internet and he has to make decisions for his business.

11:38 a.m. First juror in individual voir dire works in finance and says he plans to work for a few hours after the trial ends each day. Prior isn’t sure he’s comfortable with the man working several hours a night after sitting on the jury and worries he won’t be able to focus.

11:34 a.m. Prior finishes questioning. All the jurors will now be walked out and individual voir dire will occur with each potential juror.

11:30 a.m. Prior starts to speak before Boyce takes the bench. He apologizes. Boyce now on the bench and says he does disfavor hypothetical. He encourages Prior to avoid hypotheticals.

11:28 a.m. Blake interrupts Prior’s questioning and asks if they can approach. All the attorneys leave the courtroom and go into chambers.

11:27 a.m. Prior asking jurors what an agreement is and uses a fishing analogy during his questioning.

11:17 a.m. Prior now discussing bias with the jury.

11:15 a.m. One of the jurors says she likes to think she will take all the evidence and weigh it appropriately. She holds herself to a very high standard and says she will be fair and impartial but she can’t say how she will react to the images.

11:13 a.m. Prior says there will be photos shown to the jurors and the photos are so graphic they “hurt his heart.” “It’s painful,” he says. He asks the jurors if any of them will think the photos will be so bad they will automatically blame Daybell. Nobody raises their cards.

11:11 a.m. We are back in the courtroom and Boyce is on the bench. Jurors are in their seats. Prior asks if any of the jurors know any of the attorneys. The police officer raises his hand and says he has worked on cases with Ingrid Batey. He says she’s a very good investigator and would likely give her more weight than prosecutors.

10:41 a.m. One juror mentions that he has kidney stone issues and he could really use a bathroom break. Boyce calls for a recess. Back soon.

10:39 a.m. Prior is now questioning the group. He says he’s here to ask them questions and he doesn’t want them to infer that there is a right or wrong answer. “We’re here to just talk and get feelings about a variety of topics. There isn’t a right or wrong answer.”

10:35 a.m. Blake brings up the cheesy eggs example she shared yesterday. Her child loves eggs a particular way and if they aren’t made correctly, the kid won’t eat them. She explains that even if the jurors think there’s a better way to do something, they must follow the instructions of the judge.

10:33 a.m. Blake uses the airplane analogy used yesterday and during the Vallow jury selection. She talks about having a pilot on a plane who knows how to safely land the plane. She explains she needs the jurors to “land the plane” in the case and do their job.

10:29 a.m. Blake tells the jurors some of the images they will see in this case will be graphic and disturbing. One juror says her brother-in-law caught on fire and she put him out. She says it’s been a while but she still remembers the sights and smells. She says she’s been having trouble sleeping since she was selected to be a potential juror.

10:27 a.m. Lindsey Blake will now conduct voir dire on behalf of the state. She asks the jurors what they think of the term “brutal honestly.” A few jurors answer.

10:26 a.m. Boyce asks if any of the jurors have a religious or moral objection to standing in judgement of another. None of them raise their cards.

10:23 a.m. Boyce asks if any of the jurors are related to Daybell or if any of them have any relationship with the attorneys. None of the jurors raise their cards.

10:20 a.m. Boyce now questioning the remaining jurors about their knowledge of the case. He asks if they know about the case and six raise their red cards.

10:18 a.m. Out of the 14 in this group, 8 remain. Prior asks to approach. Attorneys are huddled in a sidebar as white noise is played in the courtroom.

10:15 a.m. Next juror says serving on the jury will create major scheduling issues with his family. They also have a family member diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and his wife may need to travel so his kids won’t have childcare. Prosecutors have no questions for the man. Prior asks if the man will be distracted during the trial. He says he will. Prior motions to dismiss the judge. Boyce grants the motion and the man leaves.

10:10 a.m. Next juror will have issues with finding childcare and the cost of childcare if he’s picked for the jury. He is a police officer and it could also create staffing shortages at work. State motions to excuse the juror, Prior agrees. Boyce denies the hardship for the juror and the man remains in the group for further questioning.

10:04 a.m. Next juror has several medical appointments coming up including Botox shots for migraines. If she can’t get them, she would have to wait for three months. She is a single mom widow and has to take her daughter to appointments. Prosecutors motion to dismiss the juror, Prior agrees. Boyce lets her go.

10:02 a.m. Next juror says he is a musician and travels for work. He never knows when he will be working but generally the work is Thursday through Sunday. It would make it hard for him to work if he serves on the jury. Prosecutors motion to excuse the juror for hardship. Prior agrees. Boyce dismisses the juror.

10 a.m. Next juror is a student and works full-time. She would miss her classes if picked for the jury and if she can’t work, she will lose her apartment. Prosecutors motion to excuse the juror for hardship. Prior agrees. Boyce lets her leave.

9:56 a.m. Second juror explains her husband’s job is ending in May so she will be making up more than 50% of her income. She is afraid of losing her job and not being able to pay her mortgage if picked for the jury. Prosecutors motion to excuse the juror. Prior agrees. Judge lets her go.

9:55 a.m. First juror says he started a new job about five weeks ago. He spoke with his new employer and they said he could keep his job if he is picked for the jury but would not get paid. Prosecutors motion to have the juror dismissed. Prior agrees. Boyce allows him to be dismissed.

9:53 a.m. Boyce asks if serving on a jury for 8-10 weeks would create a hardship for the jurors. Several raise their red cards. Their juror numbers are on the cards.

9:50 a.m. Boyce reads special instruction to jurors and says they should only consider the evidence against Chad Daybell in this case – not Lori Vallow or Alex Cox, the co-conspirators.

9:48 a.m. Boyce explains the voir dire process. Voir dire: a preliminary examination of a witness or a juror by a judge or counsel. All of these potential jurors completed in-depth questionaries that were dropped off last week at the courthouse.

9:44 a.m. Boyce reads the charges to the jury. Here’s a refresher:

9:43 a.m. Boyce introduces the prosecutors – Fremont County Prosecuting Attorney Lindsey Blake, Madison County Prosecuting Attorney Rob Wood, Special Prosecutor Ingrid Batey and Fremont County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Rocky Wixom. Boyce also introduces John Prior, Daybell’s attorney.

9:41 a.m. Judge introduces himself, the court clerk, the court marshals, the court reporter and his staff attorney.

9:38 a.m. Jurors are in the courtroom. There are 14 in this group. 8 men, 6 women.

9:32 a.m. Boyce says one of the jurors who will be brought in today said there was some discussion of the case at work but the juror kept the discussion to a minimum. The state is not concerned but Prior has some concerns about the depth of the conversation. The juror will be asked about the conversation when they come in.

9:29 a.m. Boyce apologizes for the late start. A number of jurors were late. There are 14 of the 16 here. One is 30 minutes away, the other is not responding to calls.

9:28 a.m. Judge Boyce is on the bench.

9:25 a.m. Still waiting. Wonder where those missing jurors are. If you know them, tell them they’re late.

9:20 a.m. Attorneys are back in the courtroom.

9:13 a.m. Attorneys are now meeting with Boyce in his chambers. Daybell is sitting alone at his table.

9:12 a.m. John Prior was chatting with the prosecutors at their table. They are now in a huddle on the side of the courtroom.

9:09 a.m. The court is waiting on four jurors to arrive.

9:07 a.m. Waiting for Judge Boyce and the jurors to be brought in.

8:59 a.m. There are around a dozen or so people in the gallery of the courtroom today. Many are reporters.

8:57 a.m. Most of the same bailiffs who worked in the courtroom during Lori Vallow’s trial are here again this year. The one who gives us instructions every morning is referred to by many as “courtroom daddy.” He reminds us to silence our phones, not whisper, make noise, etc. They’re all very nice.

8:55 a.m. Back in the courtroom for day 2 of jury selection in Chad Daybell’s trial. Sixteen potential jurors advanced yesterday. There needs to be a pool of 50 before defense and prosecutors begin peremptory strikes. Chad Daybell is sitting next to John Prior, his attorney, wearing a gray checkered dress shirt. Prosecutors Rob Wood, Lindsey Blake, Ingrid Batey and Rocky Wixom are also here.