Judge denies Buncich request for stricter jury screening
Post-Tribune
July 11, 2017
A federal judge denied a request to have a more stringent process to screen jurors for Lake County Sheriff John Buncich's trial on corruption charges.
Judge James Moody denied motions by Bryan Truitt, one of Buncich's defense attorneys, to use a more detailed jury questionnaire and allow for voir dire, which is where attorneys can question jurors, during the jury selection process for the sheriff's upcoming trial. Truitt petitioned the court to use more stringent methods because of the publicity around the case and Buncich's profile in the community.
"The nature of the charges in this case are not novel or complex, and the undersigned exercises its discretion to question jurors himself under federal rule of criminal procedure 24," Moody wrote, in his order. "Further, the case involves political figures, but that fact alone does not convince this court that a more detailed jury questionnaire is warranted."
Truitt filed a series of pretrial motions at the end of June, including two that specifically asked the court for a stronger vetting process for potential jurors. Truitt said, in court filings, that extra level of screening is needed because of the media publicity of the case and comments made by Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., on his radio show, could taint the jury pool.
"The publicity has been both good and bad for both sides in that the defendant is the sheriff with over 60 percent of the vote and was the head of the Lake County Democratic Party, yet has been the victim (of) an endless negative campaign by the Northwest Indiana Times and Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott," Truitt's motion read.
Buncich, former Chief of Police Timothy Downs and William Szarmach, of C.S.A. Towing in Lake Station, were named in a multicount indictment in November alleging an illegal towing scheme in which the sheriff accepted bribes in the form of thousands of dollars in cash and donations to his campaign fund, Buncich's Boosters, according to court records.
Downs pleaded guilty in December and resigned his position at the Lake County Sheriff's Department, according to court documents.
Buncich and Szarmach pleaded not guilty to the charges after the indictments were filed in November and again in April when additional counts of wire fraud were filed with the court.
Moody also ruled on two other pending requests from Buncich's defense team: one asking the judge to require federal prosecutors to notify defense attorneys if they planned to introduce evidence related to the sheriff's bad character and another seeking information on cooperating witnesses.
The judge granted the defense's request to get information on any intention related to other crime, wrongs or acts, according to court documents.
Moody denied a request to compel prosecutors to provide information on any "monetary inducements" paid to witnesses in exchange for cooperation.
"In the discovery provided to the defense, nondescript information has been disclosed that cooperating witnesses have been provided upwards of $120,000 to perform as confidential witnesses and provided other monies for campaign contributions by the government," Truitt's motion to have that information turned over read. "However, the exact payees are not listed, nor are the cooperating witnesses' tax returns included, or other inducements for their cooperation."
Truitt said, in the motion, information on those witnesses is material the government must provide the defense.
Despite his ruling, Moody wrote that there is nothing in prior case precedent that forces the government to prematurely disclose that material as it would give defense advance knowledge of the government's witnesses, according to court documents.
"However, the court reminds the government that the longer it waits to make Brady disclosures, the more it runs the risk of a fair trial challenge," Moody wrote.
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