A jury of 12 plus four alternatives is complete for the capital murder trial of accused cop killer Rahmael Holt.
Jury selection lasted two days and wrapped up just before 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Holt, 31, of Harrison is accused of shooting and killing New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw following a Nov. 17, 2017, traffic stop on Leishman Avenue. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty if Holt is convicted.
There are nine women and three men on the jury. Two women and two men make up the alternates, said Tim Dawson, lead defense attorney for Holt.
Judge Rita Hathaway would not release any other demographic information about the jurors.
Dawson said some of the potential jurors questioned were excused because of their opposition to the death penalty.
Dawson said the selection process went well and that he was pleased to get a jury within two days.
“It’s a tragic case,” Dawson said. “Officer Shaw was murdered. The question is, who did it? Who shot him? We’re adamant it was not Rahmael Holt.”
The trial is scheduled to start Monday. It is expected to last about nine days, with no proceedings scheduled for Nov. 11, which is Veterans’ Day.
On Tuesday, three jurors were selected during the morning session, leaving one juror and four alternatives to be picked during the afternoon. Jury selection was temporarily halted around 1:40 p.m., when the courthouse was evacuated for a fire alarm.
During the first day of jury selection on Monday, attorneys chose six women and three men.
The second day started with eight jurors, after one man selected Monday was excused from the jury. Dawson said he could only say the man was excused for personal reasons.
A pool of 60 jurors were brought into Hathaway’s courtroom at the Westmoreland County Courthouse on Tuesday for the second day of jury selection.
Holt was present in the courtroom both days.
On both days, no one in the jury pool was black. Dawson raised concerns Monday about the racial makeup of the jury pool.
Despite that, Dawson said he was “satisfied,” if not happy, with the composition of the jury.
