Dog Mauling Trial Weighs Blame, Bestiality
Jan. 24 -- Jury selection began today in the trial of a San Francisco couple accused of criminal responsibility for the death of their neighbor, who was mauled by their dogs in the doorway of her apartment.
Nearly 300 potential jurors were sworn in today and given 29-page questionnaires that focused on their attitudes towards dogs and how much they knew about the highly publicized case. Roughly 800 prospective jurors have been called for today and Friday. Jury selection is expected to take up to two weeks.
Marjorie Knoller and Robert Noel, the pair charged in the case, were able to convince a judge that the trial should be moved to Los Angeles because of publicity the mauling received, but failed to win separate trials or the right to keep evidence related to their relationships with the dogs out of the trial.
Both are charged with involuntary manslaughter and keeping a vicious dog. Knoller, who was with the dogs at the time that Diane Whipple was attacked on Jan. 26, 2001, also faces a charge of second-degree murder.
Knoller could face a minimum of 15 years to life in prison if she is convicted of the murder charge. Noel faces a maximum of four years in prison if he is found guilty.
The case could involve evidence that the couple, a pair of San Francisco lawyers who got the presa Canario dogs from a pair of convicts they defended and befriended, engaged in "inappropriate sexual conduct" with the animals, according to prosecutors.
"They blurred the boundaries between dogs and humans, with fatal consequences," San Francisco prosecutor Jim Hammer testified during a hearing earlier this month.
Judge James Warren ruled on Jan. 15 that any evidence related to sexual activity would only be admitted if prosecutors can show how it affected the way the dogs behaved.
"If there is sex that is relevant in this case, either with dogs or with humans, it would be scrutinized outside the presence of the media," Warren said at that hearing.
Today, Warren ruled that television cameras would be allowed in the courtroom for opening arguments, scheduled for Feb. 19, as well as for closing arguments and the verdict.
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