The second day of jury selection got off to a slow start in the case against the alleged Highland Park parade shooter, with the judge on Tuesday dismissing one of the seven jurors chosen the previous day.
By the lunch break, lawyers had accepted two additional jurors, a 19-year-old EMT who got into the profession to “help save people,” and a Palatine Township employee.
That brings the total number of impaneled jurors to eight out of the 18 needed before a trial can begin.
Lake County Judge Victoria Rossetti said she hopes to impanel the entire jury by the end of Wednesday, with opening statements set for Monday.
The defendant, Robert Crimo III, is accused of carrying out one of the worst mass shootings in state history during the suburb’s July 4 parade in 2022, killing seven and wounding 48. He showed up to court Tuesday wearing a black tracksuit after skipping the second half of jury selection on Monday.
The first setback on Tuesday happened before any questioning of jurors, when Rossetti spoke privately with attorneys and dismissed a juror.
Rossetti did not explain why the juror, who owns a local auto shop and a truck and trailer repair company, was dismissed. The juror told the court on Monday that he keeps busy with his businesses and had planned a trip to South Dakota.
Several potential jurors said it would be difficult to commit to three to five weeks the trial might take.
Sixteen potential jurors were questioned before lunch break on Tuesday.
The first juror accepted on Tuesday is a 19-year-old EMT who wants to be a paramedic. He changed career paths one month into college to medical, he said, because he “just want(s) to save people.”
The other juror accepted on Tuesday is a director of assistance for Palatine Township. She has two children, ages 6 and 10. Asked by Assistant Public Defender Anton Trizna whether she’d formed an opinion about the defendant after seeing news accounts of the attack, she said she thought “that he was guilty” but could judge the evidence impartially.