Entwistle's lawyer faults questioning of jury pool

Defense lawyers Stephanie Page and Elliot Weinstein at Middlesex Superior Court yesterday. Weinstein said jurors are not being screened for bias. (Bizuayehu Tesfaye/associated press)

WOBURN - The long-awaited trial of the Englishman accused of shooting his wife and baby daughter in cold blood in a case that captured attention on both sides of the Atlantic began yesterday with the defense lawyer publicly criticizing the presiding judge.

Yesterday, Neil Entwistle's lawyer, Elliot Weinstein, broke his own policy of refusing to speak publicly about the two-year-old case and bashed Judge Diane Kottmyer's method of questioning potential jurors, suggesting she is not properly screening for bias.

"Our concern here is that the questioning that the judge is doing is designed not to elicit the jurors' attitudes, but to foreclose the jurors from articulating their attitudes, and that is a problem," Weinstein said outside Middlesex Superior Court during a lunch break on the first day of the double-murder trial. "I don't know if we can overcome the problem, because we're not in charge of the questions."

Entwistle was charged with killing his wife, Rachel, 27, and their 9-month-old child, Lillian Rose, after the two were found dead in the couple's bed on Jan. 22, 2006. An autopsy revealed chilling details: Rachel was killed by a shot to the head, and the baby by a bullet in the abdomen.

Just days before, the couple had moved into their rented house in Hopkinton.

Investigators say that in the weeks leading up to the killings, Entwistle was failing at juggling his money problems and was sexually unsatisfied. He had resorted, they say, to trolling the Internet in search of sex and pornography.

Entwistle, 29, who appeared in court yesterday in a conservative, olive-colored suit, white shirt, and blue tie, often conferred with his lawyers throughout the proceeding.

Weinstein had petitioned the court several months ago to hire expert help in phrasing questions for potential jurors. He has contended that Entwistle cannot get a fair trial in Middlesex County because the media coverage has tainted public opinion. Kottmyer denied several motions related to that argument yesterday.

Weinstein also asked Kottmyer yesterday to question potential jurors about their feelings regarding Internet sex sites, a request she denied.

By the end of the day, five men and three women jurors had been selected from a pool of 40 who were interviewed.

One potential juror, asked if he thought the details of the case disturbed him, replied, "I think it would be upsetting, but I think everybody deserves a fair trial." The court has kept the names of potential jurors under seal.

Several candidates were excused from the courtroom after indicating they had either already formed an opinion about the case or could not be impartial during trial. Others were excused for reasons including lack of day care and planned chemotherapy treatment. One man was excused because he is coordinating a wedding for his son, who has just returned from serving in Iraq.

The case has attracted worldwide attraction since Entwistle fled Hopkinton for his hometown in England the day after the killings. He was taken into custody in England and charged with murder and was returned to the United States in February after waiving extradition. Media representatives from around England were in the courtroom yesterday.

Jury selection will continue today.