Jury selected in trial of man accused of 2018 killing of New Orleans couple after nearly six-year wait
Disclaimer: All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) –– The trial for Kenneth Augustine is underway nearly six years after his arrest, starting with jury selection.
Augustine is accused of fatally shooting Darnisha Desilva and her fiancé Gregory Heisser, III, in 2018.
Jury selection was set to begin Monday morning, but when the court called for them, there were no more jurors available, forcing Judge Benedict Willard to delay the case by one day.
Man accused of fatally hitting bicyclist with car in St. Claude area
The court called up 60 potential jurors to be questioned by the prosecutors and defense attorneys. The process is known as voir dire, which means “to speak the truth.” It allows attorneys to weed out any jurors who may have a personal connection to the case at hand or bias that would prevent them from fairly serving on the jury.
Some questions posed to potential jurors were simple, like what they do for work or where they are from. However, other questions were more complex, like asking jurors to rate how likely they would trust a testimony, depending on who was on the stand. The example that came up frequently was if they would trust the testimony of a child.
After nearly seven hours of questioning, the attorneys narrowed down the list to 12 jurors with two alternates.
Thibodaux man sentenced for robbing gas station at gun point
Family members of the victims were emotional after jury selection.
“I’m just thankful that we’re all on the same page and able to move forward, with a goal in mind for justice to be served,” said the mother of Gregory Heisser, III Lurline LaBeaud Duncan.
The trial will continue Wednesday morning, starting with opening statements.
Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.
Latest Posts
Three men sentenced to prison after shooting, assaulting teens in Orleans Parish
Watch: Nico Saltaformaggio continues to be Nicholls’ most productive arm out of the bullpen
Romeville residents describe ‘terrifying’ experience post-storm
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGNO.
