Jury seated in Timothy Jones trial, opening statements set for Tuesday
12 jurors and six alternates will listen to testimony over the next few weeks
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LEXINGTON, S.C. (WOLO) — Two weeks after jury selection began, a group of 18 men and women will decide the fate of a Lexington County man accused of killing his five children.
Starting with a pool of nearly 200 potential jurors, the prosecution and defense in the Timothy Jones trial reduced the field down to 50 on Friday, and then ultimately 18.
After a lengthy questioning period backed with various requests to change venues from the defense, there will be 12 primary jurors and six alternates on the case.
Judge Eugene Griffith says jurors won’t know if they are alternates or among the twelve primary jurors until deliberations begin.
Of the pool, 10 are women and eight are men. Most of the jury is white, though there are two African American women and one Asian American man among the group.
Starting Tuesday afternoon, the jury will hear opening statements, which will lead to testimony from more than 250 witnesses.
Back in September 2014, Jones was arrested and charged with the murder of his five children. After he was arrested in Mississippi, their bodies were found on a hillside in Alabama.
The prosecution is pushing for Jones to get the death penalty, while his defense team has filed a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity.
Guiding the State’s case is Solicitor Rick Hubbard, who represents four counties, including Lexington.
Hubbard has been the 11th District Solicitor since 2017. In his corner are Deputy Solicitors Suzanne Mays and Shawn Graham.
On the other side of the aisle are Boyd Young and Bill McGuire, who are both Capital Defenders for the South Carolina Commission for Indigent Defense.
Young and McGuire both represented Dylann Roof during his trial.
Public defender Robert Madsen and Casey Secor of Suzerain Capital Defense round out Jones’s team.
If Jones is found guilty, the same jury will hear testimony about whether he sentenced to death or to life in prison.
