EAGLE, Colo., June 28 (UPI) -- Court officials say 1,000 people in Eagle, Colo., will be summoned to the jury pool for NBA star Kobe Bryant's rape trial, the Washington Post reported Monday.
That is nearly five times the size of a normal Eagle County jury pool, but District Judge Terry Ruckriegle decided the huge mailing would be necessary to find enough locals who can be open-minded about a case that has been engulfed in media attention for the past year.
The Los Angeles Lakers guard faces one felony count of sexual assault in connection with a June 30 incident last year where a 19-year-old student claimed she was raped. Bryant claims the sex was consensual.
Those receiving a jury summons will be ordered to appear at Eagle's courthouse on Aug. 27 to begin filling out questionnaires. Court officials expect that hundreds of them will be excused from service almost immediately, because of health or family problems or because of some connection to the case.
Eventually, the judge will arrive at a pool of about 100 potential jurors, who will then be questioned by defense lawyers and prosecutors before the final 12 and alternates are selected.
