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Jury selection completed, Robert Telles' trial moving ahead to opening statements

Jaewon Jung was in the courtroom during the jury selection process, the first steps in the murder trial nearly two years in the making.
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Telles Jury Selection Day 2
Day 1 in jury selection for Robert Telles murder trial
Day One of the Telles Trial

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Monday marked the beginning of choosing a jury in the murder trial of former Clark County public administrator Robert Telles, who is accused of killing Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative reporter Jeff German in September 2022.

With the jury now set, opening statements will begin on Wednesday.

Jaewon Jung will be in the courtroom as the process gets underway. You can follow along here as that process unfolds.

What to know ahead of Robert Telles' trial for the killing of Jeff German
What to know ahead of the Robert Telles murder trial

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Day 2

Click here for the Day 2 recap

Jury is set in Robert Telles murder trial

In Day 2 of jury questioning, law enforcement bias, social media and pre-trial publicity were front and center.

Prospective jurors were asked about their opinions of law enforcement and if they could be fair to witnesses who are a part of law enforcement.

One juror said he views police negatively and does not believe he can be unbiased.

Another juror said she holds police to a higher standard and gives them more credibility than other citizens.

Both prosecutors and Telles' team stressed to jurors they need people on the panel who can be fair and open-minded.

On Tuesday, an additional panel of about 30 prospective jurors were brought in for questioning.

5:38 p.m. | Seven men, seven women in the jury. Opening statements begin at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow morning.

5:27 p.m. | The jury has been seated. Opening statements begin tomorrow.

3:29 p.m. | About a dozen more prospective jurors from the new panel of 28 have been excused. The remaining pool will be brought in with the original panel for questioning.

2:24 p.m. | There were about 30 potential jurors in the original panel, and now 28 more are being called in for questioning.

2:18 p.m. | Court is in another recess. The judge said she'll be calling more people to the panel of potential jurors.

2:02 p.m. | Several potential jurors are being asked if they would want someone like themselves to be a juror on this case if they were on either party. A few people responded yes, saying they are open-minded and fair to both sides.

1:40 p.m. | Prosecutor Chris Hamner is now asking prospective jurors about their opinions on social media. Some people said they believe social media can be misleading.

1:28 p.m. | Court is back in session. Prospective jurors are being asked about pre-trial publicity.

12:18 p.m. | Court is in recess until 1 p.m.

11:49 a.m. | 32 prospective jurors entered the courtroom.

11:36 a.m. | Robert Telles walked into the courtroom. Three prospective jurors were excused before questioning began.

10:21 a.m. | Day 2 of jury selection questioning was supposed to take place at 10:30 a.m. but there was a short delay because a prospective juror didn't show up on time.

Day 1

Click here for the Day 1 recap

Day 1 of jury selection in Robert Telles murder trial

A hearing took place for about 20 minutes before the jury selection began on the last of Jeff German's devices and two motions filed by Telles' defense team; one was for dismissing the case and the other was for excluding some evidence from being used in trial.

Telles is being represented by defense attorney Robert Draskovich.

State prosecutors in this case are Pamela Weckerly and Christopher Hamner.

Telles is waiving privilege assertions on German's devices. This means the trial will proceed without Telles' team challenging any privileged information that may be on German's devices.

There was a panel of about 60 potential jurors questioned during intense moments on Day One of jury selection.

The panel of people came from all different backgrounds.

Judge Michelle Leavitt told the panel of prospective jurors some questions are "personal" but "necessary" to determine if they qualify to be a fair and impartial juror in this case.

They were asked a series of questions such as if being selected would cause any financial burdens and if they were exposed to this case by the media.

Channel 13 also obtained the juror questionnaire which was sent out weeks ago.

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Questions pertain to whether they hold any biases which would prevent them from being objective in the case and their familiarity with the case.

At the end of Monday, at least 32 jurors were selected to return on Tuesday morning for more questioning. At least half of the panel was excused.

5:14 p.m. | Day one of jury selection just wrapped up. We know at least 32 potential jurors from today’s panel will return for questioning tomorrow.

4:31 p.m. | Prosecutors are now addressing the panel of jurors and asking if they believe the criminal justice system is fair.

3:18 p.m. | Potential jurors are being asked a series of questions such as if they have ever been convicted of a felony, if they are acquainted with any of the prosecutors of Telles’ team and if selected as a juror, would it cause any burden.

2:26 p.m. | State prosecutors and Telles’ attorney just read witness lists for trial. Names of some include people who work for Metro and the public administrator’s office.

2:18 p.m. | Potential jurors just walked into the courtroom. Marshal said one more juror showed up, still down eight jurors from what was supposed to be a panel of 65 today.

2:04 p.m. | The courtroom is still missing nine jurors from the panel of 65, but the judge wants to proceed with selection right now.

1:48 p.m. | Another question asks from which sources (ex: TV, radio, newspaper, etc.) the person may have learned about this case because it has “received extensive publicity.”

1:41 p.m | Jaewon Jung just obtained the juror questionnaire sent out to potential jurors weeks ago. There are 45 questions. Some of them include “Are you a subscriber to the Las Vegas Review-Journal?” and “Have you read news stories by Jeff German?”

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1:34 p.m. | Telles’ defense team had filed a motion to dismiss the case altogether. Judge Michelle Leavitt denied it before jury selection is set to begin.

1:28 p.m. | There is a panel of 65 potential jurors today but right now, the courtroom is in brief recess as we wait for 13 more jurors to arrive.

1:25 p.m. | Both state and Telles’ team received information from RJ on Jeff German’s devices this morning.

But Telles is choosing not to challenge privilege assertions on devices meaning there will be no further analysis of the info and trial will proceed.

1:03 p.m. | Robert Telles is in a suit and tie for a hearing before jury selection for his murder trial.

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