(AP) – Court officials say the rarely utilized practice of an anonymous jury will be used for the high-profile first-degree murder trial of rapper Torrence “Lil Boosie” Hatch.
The Advocate reports the trial of Hatch, accused in an alleged murder-for-hire in 2009, is scheduled to begin April 30.
East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore III said the last time he can recall an anonymous jury being used in a parish case was in 1987 for the trial of three Colombians accused in the machine-gun slaying in Baton Rouge of drug smuggler-turned-government informant Adler “Barry” Seal.
Moore, who noted that Hatch’s attorneys did not oppose his office’s request for an anonymous jury, said jurors will be identified only by number “out of fairness and assistance to the jurors.”
“It’s just something we thought would be better for the case and the jurors,” he said outside the 19th Judicial District Courthouse downtown after a status hearing in Hatch’s murder case.
Hatch’s attorneys dismissed any suggestion that threats have been made in the case.
“There are no safety issues,” Jason Williams, one of those lawyers, told reporters.
“There’s no evidence of any threats against any potential jurors in this case,” added Martin Regan, who also represents Hatch. “We want to get a fair jury.”
Williams said Hatch is “ready for this day in court.”
“He’s good. He’s frustrated,” Williams said.
Hatch, 29, is accused of hiring Michael “Marlo Mike” Louding to kill Terry Boyd, 35, who was shot to death through a window while inside his Vermillion Drive home Oct. 21, 2009.
Louding, 18, and Adrian Pittman, 37, also are charged with first-degree murder in Boyd’s death. Louding is charged in five other slayings.
Moore said his office is not seeking the death penalty against Hatch, meaning he would be sentenced to life in prison if convicted as charged.
Hatch also submitted Wednesday to a handwriting sample at the request of prosecutors.
Moore would say only that “it’s part of our ongoing preparation for trial.”
The handwriting issue does not relate to the state’s alleged murder-for-hire conspiracy, Williams said. He suggested the issue may relate to rap lyrics.
Hatch, who already was imprisoned on drug charges, pleaded guilty in November to additional drug charges and was sentenced to eight years in prison.
Hatch is being held in the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola.
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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com
 
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