Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - For the second day Voir dire, the jury selection process in the federal case against Tops mass shooter Payton Gendron, continues
Given the stakes - a possible death sentence for Gendron - voir dire will be slow and legally meticulous process that could take multiple weeks before a 12-person/6-alternate jury is selected and the federal trial begins.
Broome County native, Gendron, 23, faces 27 federal charges in connection with his racially-motivated May 14, 2022 shooting spree at a Tops supermarket on Jefferson Avenue that left 10 people dead and three injured.
Gendron, pleaded guilty to state charges in connection with the shooting spree and was sentenced to life in prison with no parole.
Gendron's own federal defense team concedes their client will likely be found guilty on all, or most, of the 27 charges. Of those charges,, 20 would make Gendron eligible for a death sentence.
This marks the first federal case in Buffalo's history where the death penalty may be sentenced. It is also the first federal case in New York state since 1963 where the death penalty is looming.
Taking nothing for granted both prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office and Gendron's defense team along with federal Judge Lawrence Vilardo, who is presiding over the case, are asking potential jurors a mix of standard but also specialized questions.
Among them: The defense team has repeatedly asked potential jurors if they were king (or queen) of an island, would you allow for the death penalty.
The question is being used to gauge juror's inner feelings about sentencing someone, Gendron in this case, to the death penalty.
Questions center on the death penalty vs. life in prison and whether Gendron's age (18) at the time of the attack is a mitigating factor.
There have also been questions about the role of social media including statements attributed to Gendron leading up to the shooting spree.
There have been questions centering on mental health of the shooter and whether, as a juror, they could watch a graphic video that Gendron filmed of the attacks - while he was shooting the victims.
"This is not a referendum on race," Vilardo instructed jurors on Tuesday morning.
Potential jurors, thus far, have all been white and a mix of men and woman of varying age groups.
The trial itself probably won't start until late November or early December and run into 2027's first quarter.
Jurors facing a mix of standard and specialized questions as part of the vetting process in federal death penalty trial
Jurors facing a mix of standard and specialized questions as part of the vetting process in federal death penalty trial
