Judge to open parts of jury selection in Roeder trial BY RON SYLVESTER The Wichita Eagle

Judge to open parts of jury selection in Roeder trial

BY RON SYLVESTER

The Wichita Eagle

WICHITA — After a court battle that reached the Kansas Supreme Court, a judge agreed today to release a blank jury questionnaire and open up parts of jury selection in the first-degree murder trial of Scott Roeder.

Judge Warren Wilbert, though, closed the hearing he held whether to open court documents and proceedings, despite the objections of news organizations that had taken the legal action.

Roeder, 51, is charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Wichita abortion doctor George Tiller in the lobby of his church.

Attorney Lyndon Vix had petitioned the state Supreme Court on behalf of The Eagle, Kansas City Star, the Associated Press and KWCH-12. Tuesday night, the high court reversed Wilbert's ruling to close the proceedings and the questionnaire.

After the closed hearing, Vix said Wilbert had agreed to open parts of jury selection to the public but that individual jurors will first be questioned in private about "sensitive personal issues."

Jury selection will then be opened to the public through news reporters. Wilbert has reserved seats for the four media outlets who filed the court action.

Jury selection had been scheduled to start Monday but was delayed as the prosecution asked to file further legal theories trying to limit Roeder's defense. Wilbert said Tuesday that he wasn't going to place any further restrictions on Roeder, other than preventing him from using the so-called necessity defense.

Roeder has said he shot and killed Tiller on May 31 in his church to protect the unborn.

Although Roeder can't say the killing was necessary, his lawyers can try to build a case for voluntary manslaughter, which in Kansas is the "unreasonable but honest belief" that the use of force was necessary to defend another.

Wilbert has not ruled on whether he will give that option to the jury, and said he will not until the conclusion of evidence. But Wilbert said he could envision evidence that might require him to include that charge.

Roeder is charged with first-degree premeditated murder. He would face life in prison if convicted.