Demonstrators, distractions outside courthouse

Lucy McBath arrives at Duval County Courthosue on Monday morning.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The retrial of Michael Dunn on murder charges is unfolding much like his first trial in February: Demonstrators and national and local media outside the Duval County Courthouse and extra security inside as scores of potential jurors are brought in one by one to be asked what they've heard about this case.

Chanting "Justice for Jordan," the demonstrators cheered as Jordan Davis' mother and father made their way into the court for the second murder trial in seven months.

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"What we want you to know, as a family, whatever verdict we receive, we will be humble and abide by," said Jordan's mother, Lucy McMath. "But the verdict and the justice we seek will always and only come from God."

"We're just here to thank you and pray with you," Ron Davis told the crowd.

As jury selection begins the Davis family arrives at the courthouse.

There was no visible support for Dunn, who was convicted in the first trial of three counts of attempted murder for firing into an SUV full of teenagers during an argument over loud music in November 2012. That jury deadlocked on the murder charge in the death of Davis. There was no sighting of Dunn's parents, who attended every day of the February trial.

Inside the courtroom, Dunn's new attorney, Waffa Hanania, used the demonstrations and media attention to make her point about why the trial should be moved out of Jacksonville.

"They could be influencing the jury pool, and that is why we need to move the trial to another city," Hanania said.

Judge Russell Healey has not ruled on Hanania's motion for change of venue, saying he would try to seat an impartial jury in Duval County first.

Attorney Gene Nichols, who is not affiliated with the case, said the spectacle outside the courthouse could help make her case.

"Every one (of the potential jurors) has seen the protesters who have come today," Nichols said. "Her concern for her client is that maybe potential jurors have been tainted by the individuals who are out here. In the best interest of her client, she is going to continue to try to have this trial moved."

Healey said potential jurors cannot be expected to know nothing about the case -- most people in this county will have heard of it -- but they are being asked whether or not they would be able to set their opinions aside and be fair and impartial.

"If you look at the biggest trials that have ever happened in the country, there is no way the jurors who came in on O.J. Simpson's criminal case did not know anything about his case. The question is whether or not they can be fair and impartial," Nichols said.

In addition to the other distractions, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office closed streets outside Monday morning after a suspicious backpack was found at the corner of Adams and Pearl streets. The bomb squad was called and "rendered safe" the bag and traffic returned to normal in about an hour.

The courthouse was not evacuated, and likely the potential jurors were not aware of the additional police activity.

JSO's priorities for courthouse security include keeping the sidewalks clear and maintaining traffic. And while people have the right to gather and demonstrate, they were asked to stay in the grass.

"If people get out here with bullhorns and it's to the point where it interferes with the court proceedings, they would come out, notify police and let them know that part of the protest would have to stop," News4Jax crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said.

Once jurors are selected, they will have their own security detail and come and go through a special courthouse entrance without seeing the demonstrators. They likely will also be sequestered and their access to information about the trial will be limited.