The woman accused of killing her yoga store co-worker is slated to go to trial Monday, setting the stage for a high-profile courtroom drama in a case that has rocked the Bethesda community.
Jury selection is set to begin in the first-degree murder trial of Brittany Norwood, who is charged with killing 30-year-old Jayna Murray at the Lululemon Athletica where they both worked in March.
Montgomery County prosecutors allege that Norwood, 28, beat Murray to death, crushing her skull and severing her spinal cord. Norwood then pretended to be a victim to cover up the slaying, prosecutors say.
| Case timeline |
| » March 11: Jayna Murray is beaten to the death at the Lululemon Athletica store in Bethesda. |
| » March 12: Police find Murray dead and Brittany Norwood bound at the store. |
| » March 18: Norwood is arrested. |
| » May 15: Norwood is indicted by a Montgomery County grand jury. |
| » Aug. 3: Prosecutors file notice that they will seek a sentence of life in prison without parole if Norwood is convicted. |
| » August/September: Norwood's attorneys explore an insanity defense, but ultimately do not file the papers for that plea. |
| » Monday: Norwood's trial is scheduled to begin. |
Both the brutal killing and Norwood's arrest startled the region, leaving both sides to grapple with the challenges of taking a high-profile, emotionally charged case to trial, which is expected to last eight days.
The case has generated widespread media attention. It will likely take at least a day to chose a jury, said Seth Zucker, spokesman for Montgomery County prosecutors.
Many prospective jurors will have heard about the case, and all of those jurors will need to be questioned to see whether they have biases or have already formed opinions on it.
"That's going to prolong jury selection," Zucker said.
Prosecutors have said they believe Norwood killed Murray because a manager had instructed Murray to look into Norwood's purse for evidence of stolen merchandise, which she found. The prosecution wants the jury to hear a recording of a conversation Norwood had with her brother and testimony about others regarding the shoplifting allegations. Prosecutors also intend to present DNA, shoeprint, blood spatter and fingerprint evidence.
Maryland legal experts say the case's notoriety presents challenges for both sides, but likely gives the prosecution an upper hand.
"The sympathy would probably be for the prosecution," said Steven Kupferberg, a criminal defense lawyer not affiliated with the case.
Rene Sandler, another defense lawyer not involved in the case, noted that both sides will have to work hard at "keeping the case about the facts and the evidence" rather than emotions.
Norwood's attorneys, who did not respond to a request for comment, have been tight-lipped about their defense strategy.
Her lawyers explored entering a plea of not criminally responsible -- Maryland's version of the insanity defense -- but did not file such a plea by a court-imposed September deadline.
Douglas Wood, one of Norwood's attorneys, said this summer that he was open to negotiations for a potential plea agreement, but expected to go to trial. Zucker would not say whether any plea deal had been offered.
"I would only say that it will go to trial Monday," he said.
