Jury seated in trial of accused 'American Sniper' killer
STEPHENVILLE, Texas — A jury of two men and 10 women was selected Monday at the capital murder trial of Eddie Ray Routh, the man accused of killing "American Sniper" Chris Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield at a Texas gun range.
Opening arguments are expected to begin Wednesday.
Routh's attorneys plan to pursue an insanity defense. Prosecutors won't seek the death penalty. Routh faces life in prison without parole if convicted.
Kyle, 38, and Littlefield, 35, were trying to help Routh, a former Marine, when prosecutors say he shot them at the Glen Rose, Texas, gun range in 2013.
"Amercan Sniper," the Clint Eastwood-directed movie based on Kyle's memoir as a celebrated sniper who served four tours in Iraq has grossed nearly $300 million. In response to the attention paid to the Kyle case, officials called in more than four times as many potential jurors as they would for a regular trial. Yet it took just one day to seat the panel, after a screening process last week narrowed the jury pool.
Simply reading Kyle's book or seeing the Academy Award-nominated movie starring Bradley Cooper — which ends with a depiction of Kyle meeting Routh, followed by footage from Kyle's funeral — weren't grounds for dismissal. Instead, potential jurors were asked if they could set aside what they had already heard.
"It's hard not to have knowledge of this case," Erath County District Attorney Alan Nash said. "It's pervasive."
On Monday, Routh appeared in court in a gray sport coat and appeared engaged in the proceedings as jury selection continued.
Prosecutors told the nearly 130 people in the courtroom that no matter what they've heard, there is a lot they have not heard yet about the case. They explained that with an insanity defense, the burden on the the defense to prove their client is or was insane. Prosecutors said there can not be a shadow of doubt, calling it a "very narrow door."
Routh's defense attorney asked lots of individuals questions of the potential jurors and whether they could require the state to prove its case. He asked the room how many of those present had seen "American Sniper," and few hands were raised.
Another 17 potential jurors were dismissed Monday after 19 were dismissed over the weekend. Judge Jason Cashon said pretrial publicity did not hamper their attempts to seat a jury, and he denied two defense motions for a continuance and a change of venue that were filed because of pretrial publicity.
Jerry Loftin, a longtime attorney who has handled high-profile cases for decades, said mounting an insanity defense offers about the only chance Routh has to be found not guilty.
"There are two kinds of insanity. If you're currently off your rocker, or off your rocker when this happened," he said.
But Loftin acknowledged insanity defenses rarely work these days. And he said the publicity surrounding the death of Kyle in particular will hurt the defense.
"There is so much publicity, it takes it to another level," he said.
Security is tight in Stephenville, where the case will be heard. Prospective jurors have been screened since last week.
Family members have said Routh, 27, struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder after leaving the Marines in 2010. The small arms technician served in Iraq and was deployed to earthquake-ravaged Haiti. Kyle took Routh to the shooting range after Routh's mother asked if he could help her son.
Kyle made more than 300 kills as a sniper for SEAL Team 3, according to his own count and earned two Silver Stars for valor. After leaving the military, Kyle volunteered to help veterans facing mental health problems, often taking them shooting.
About two hours after Kyle, Littlefield and Routh arrived at Rough Creek Lodge and Resort on Feb. 2, 2013, an employee discovered the bodies of Kyle and Littlefield at the remote range.
Authorities say Routh drove to his sister's house in Kyle's truck, telling her and her husband that he had killed Kyle and Littlefield.
His sister told police that Routh "was out of his mind, saying people were sucking his soul and that he could smell the pigs."
Contributing: The Associated Press