10/8/2010
Defense lawyers of Robert Stewart argued that their client would not be given a fair trial, if it would be done in Moore County. He said that most of the potential jurors would have already prejudiced the accused for the killings in a Carthage nursing home in 2009.
In support of their argument, the defense presented as evidence the telephone surveys that Stewart’s lawyers commissioned, wherein the results showed that potential jurors in Moore County, along with other four surrounding counties, have already made up their minds regarding the mass shooting incident.
In Moore County alone, 95% of the respondents have already heard about the case, and 55% already have their own opinions, of which 95% believed that Stewart was either probably or definitely guilty.
As a natural response, District Attorney Maureen Krueger said that the results of the survey could not actually predict if actual jurors would be biased.
Stewart is charged for the killing rampage in March 29, 2009 at the Pinelake Health and Rehabilitation Center. Seven patients and a nurse died, which resulted to a charge of 8 counts of 1st-degree murders.
Defense lawyer Jonathan L. Megerian said that another angle for Stewart’s defense was his mental health during the time of the shootings, but he has not yet filed a formal notice for it.
