Six picked to serve on jury in Sapry trial

LACONIA — Six people were selected Tuesday to serve on the jury that will hear evidence in the murder-insanity case of Hassan Sapry.

The three men and three women were among 25 potential jurors questioned by prosecution and defense attorneys and Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Leonard, during the first day of individual voir dire proceedings, which lasted for a total of five hours.

Jury selection is scheduled to resume Wednesday morning and will continue until 16 people — 12 regular jurors and four alternates — have been selected.

Testimony is scheduled to begin next Monday and last for two weeks.

Sapry is facing charges of first- and second-degree murder and other charges related to the death of Wilfred Guzman Sr. on April 18, 2019. Sapry has told the court that he intends to plead not guilty by reason of insanity.

The insanity defense was one of two major issues which attorneys focused on as the 25 members of the jury pool were questioned individually under oath.

Those interviewed said that they had an open mind and would rely on witness testimony of whether Sapry was in the midst of a mental illness at the time Guzman was killed.

Most said they believed that mental illness was real and that it could lead people to do things they otherwise would not do.

But one potential juror wondered if people use insanity to “get out of punishment,” although that person later said they would put their own opinions aside and rely on the testimony of expert witnesses. That potential juror was not selected.

Another potential juror wondered whether insanity was “a ruse,” and also said that they would place their trust in the testimony and the judge’s instructions to reach a fair verdict. Both the prosecution and defense told the judge they accepted that person as a juror.

The other issue that dominated questioning was the ability of the people to handle graphic testimony.

Defense attorneys Mark Sisti and Wade Harwood were exceedingly candid in describing the approximately two dozen photographs showing Guzman’s body which will be shown to the jury during the course of the trial.

Throughout the day Harwood used the words “gory,” “horrific,” and “gruesome.”

“Graphic doesn’t begin to describe these photographs,” he said.

“This was a murder on steroids,” Sisti told one of the first potential jurors to be questioned.

Those who said they were unsure how they would react upon seeing such evidence were excused.

Sapry sat at the defense table with Sisti and Harwood, who took turns questioning the potential jurors. But both attorneys concluded their questions by standing behind Sapry's chair, placing their hands on their client’s shoulders and saying to each potential juror, “If you are selected can you promise to Hassan Sapry that you will judge him fairly?”

On Monday, 181 potential jurors showed up for the general voir dire session. Of that number, 93 were excused by the judge for one reason or another.

During Tuesday’s session, Sisti and Harwood told the potential jurors that most of those excused on Monday were relieved after telling the judge that they believed or strongly suspected that an insanity defense was bogus.

Of those excused Tuesday, 16 were let go by Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Leonard — most because of problems involving work or family commitments or qualms about graphic testimony. One was let go after being challenged for cause because they had a sibling who works in the attorney general’s office which is prosecuting the case. Five were relieved after a peremptory challenge from the defense, and three due to peremptory challenges from the prosecution.

In a first-degree murder case, each side is entitled to at least 15 peremptory challenges — that is challenges made without cause or explanation.