A half-day of jury selection on Thursday yielded no new jurors for the upcoming trial of two men accused in the 2016 mass shooting in Wilkinsburg.
The death penalty trial against Cheron Shelton and Robert Thomas is scheduled to begin Feb. 3. Each defendant faces five counts of homicide, one count of homicide of an unborn child and other charges related to the March 9, 2016, slayings on Franklin Avenue.
Attorneys made it through a dozen potential jurors in the four hours of vetting, but most were either excused for hardship or stricken for cause – the latter meaning the removal of a potential juror who seems unable to be fair or impartial.
One had travel plans, and three said they could not afford to miss two to three weeks of work. One man said he couldn’t keep what he’d heard about case and the defendants from impacting his verdict, and another woman said she couldn’t set aside her mistrust of police.
Six jurors were selected over the first three days: Three men and three women. The jury will be made up of 12 people plus four alternates.
Prosecuting the case are Deputy District Attorney Kevin Chernosky and Assistant District Attorney Lisa Pellegrini. Shelton, 32, is represented by Wendy Williams and Randall McKinney, while Thomas, 31, is represented by Casey White and Michael Machen.
Killed in the 2016 gunfire were siblings Jerry Shelton, 35, Brittany Powell, 27, and Chanetta Powell, 25; their cousin, Tina Shelton, 37; family friend Shada Mahone, 26; and Chanetta Powell’s unborn son, Demetrius. None of the slain Sheltons are related to the defendant.
Jury selection is scheduled to resume at 9 a.m. Friday.
