Jury selection in Palestra trial starts

The trial of the two men charged with the March killing began yesterday. and Leeann O'Keefe Jury selection got underway yesterday for the two men charged in connection with last year's shootings outside the Palestra after a high school basketball game that left one man dead and three others injured. During the day's proceedings, the prosecution indicated that they would likely seek the death penalty for Kyle McLemore and Nathaniel Ortiz, both 21, for allegedly shooting Anthony Davis to death following the Philadelphia Public League's high school basketball game at the Palestra last March 1. Attorneys were able to agree yesterday on five jurors to serve on the 14-member panel, which includes two alternates. If the jury convicts either defendant of first degree murder, it would also have to choose a sentence. The jurors include three white women, one black woman and one black man. Jury selection will continue today and, if necessary, tomorrow. More than 30 of the 80 possible jurors were disqualified because they told Common Pleas Judge John Poserina that they did not think they could administer the death penalty. The judge also asked the pool whether they knew about the high profile case -- which received an enormous amount of publicity last spring in every local media outlet. Very few said they had. Both sides said they were pleased with the jury make-up so far. "We're very happy with the jurors we've selected up to this point," said Ortiz's lawyer, Fortunato Perri. Although Ortiz and McLemore are being tried together, they are represented by different attorneys. Attorneys also argued several pretrial motions about whether to allow certain pieces of evidence into the record. In addition to the murder charge, the defendants are being tried for three counts of aggravated assault and other related charges in connection with the shooting. McLemore turned himself in to the police on March 16, two days after police issued a warrant for his arrest. Ortiz was apprehended about two months later. Three other people were injured in the incident, including then-College senior John La Bombard, who was working in the Blauhaus -- a small wooden shed located on 33rd Street between Walnut and Chestnut streets -- when a stray bullet came through the buildings walls and struck him in the leg. Also injured were two North Philadelphia residents, Latisha Feribee and Jeffrey Noble. All three victims are scheduled to testify in the trial. Both defendants -- who remain in custody and were at yesterday's hearing -- have extensive criminal records, including arrests for robbery and drug possession. The defense attorneys stressed to potential jurors the importance of the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. They also warned the jurors not to be swayed by emotional testimony from the Davis family.