"Jury selection in the Hayes case represents a perfect storm of what is wrong with jury selection in Connecticut. Alone among the states, we engage in individual, sequestered, voir dire, with lawyers free to engage in endless individual questioning of jurors outside the presence of all other jurors. In the Hayes case, one of the state's top public defenders, Thommas Ullman, who represents Hayes, is known in routine cases to question each potential juror for an hour or so. In this case, where jurors must be "death-qualified," Ullman will be lucky to get through three potential panel members a day. What's more, the case will be presided over by Judge John Blue, a quirky jurist aching for recognition who has elevated distinctions without difference into an art form. Not since Gilligan's Island has the prospect of pointless dithering been so ominous"
The above was taken from a recent Norm Pattis editorial-see link above-not a big fan of pattis in general- his lack of compassion and ability to empathize with the victims of crime clearly overshadows the value of his legal experience. But he makes a few good points albeit one must Wade through his usual dispassionate stance and oft times outright disrespectful cruel and biased comments regarding the tragic victims of violent crime.
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