![judge in vernissage shooting case already judge in vernissage shooting case already](https://thejasminebrand.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Screen-Shot-2021-01-25-at-9.11.48-AM-595x555.png)
JUDGE IN VERNISSAGE SHOOTING CASE ALREADY TRIAL
The shooting made international news in 2014 and has remained a talking point in the county ever since.īecause of this, Grimaldi said he was surprised the trial wasn’t moved to a different jurisdiction where jurors are less likely to already have an opinion on the case.Įscobar, meantime, said he’s optimistic that impartial jurors will be found and a fair trial held. Grimaldi and Escobar acknowledged that finding unbiased jurors in East Pasco County could be a tough task. It could become an issue, she said, if they’d formed an opinion or had fixed ideas about it. Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Susan Barthle said last month that jurors should not be excluded for simply knowing about the incident. Jury selection will begin today and could take days. Ultimately, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that the change couldn’t affect cases retroactively. Then lawmakers changed the law, shifting the burden of proof to prosecutors and raising questions about whether Reeves’ argument should get another chance in court. When a circuit judge ruled against him, Reeves appealed. Reeves says he acted out of fear for his life, an argument that bolstered his request for immunity under Florida’s controversial stand your ground law. Oulson was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead later that day. Witnesses said Chad Oulson tried to speak, but too much blood seeped from his mouth.Īs frantic moviegoers performed CPR and called 911, Reeves sat back down in his seat with his gun in his lap, court records said. On its way, the bullet hit Nicole Oulson’s hand as she attempted to hold her husband back. 380-caliber handgun and shot Oulson in the chest. Reeves reached into his pocket, pulled out a. Oulson stood up to face the man behind him, then threw a bag of popcorn in his face. He told Oulson to stop and the two argued, prompting Reeves to leave the theater to complain, grunting and kicking the backs of seats as he left. 13, 2014.īoth men were with their wives, the Oulsons seated one row ahead, when Reeves noticed the young father was texting during the film’s previews. No one denies that Reeves, now 79, shot and killed Oulson, 43, during a Monday matinee showing of the Mark Wahlberg film Lone Survivor at Wesley Chapel’s Cobb Grove 16 Theater on Jan. The charge carries a sentence of up to life in prison.