Murder trial’s jury selection to begin

Morgan Hill teen vanished on her way to a school bus stop

SAN JOSE — Jury selection is set to begin Monday in the capital-murder trial of a man accused of abducting and killing 15year-old Sierra LaMar near Morgan Hill more than four years ago.

Antonin Garcia-Torres, 22, has pleaded not guilty to the alleged murder as well as to unrelated charges that he attempted to kidnap other women.

Hundreds of prospective jurors next week will be asked to fill out a questionnaire, which still was being drafted Thursday afternoon.

The case is then set to reconvene in early November after lawyers for the prosecution and defense review the answers on the questionnaires. Questioning of prospective jurors is scheduled to begin Nov. 14.

One of the biggest challenges will be finding 12 jurors and up to six alternates willing and able to serve during the whole trial, which could last six months.

In addition, jury selection may take weeks because this is a death penalty case, and jurors must be open to the possibility of imposing the ultimate punishment.

LaMar vanished on her way to a school bus stop near Morgan Hill on the morning of March 16, 2012. Her body never has been found. Transcripts from the grand jury that indicted Garcia-Torres indicated prosecutors linked him to LaMar, whom he did not know, through evidence found in his car.