Jury selection looms in Skakel trial

By

Posted 8:59AM on Tuesday, April 2, 2002

NORWALK, CONNECTICUTT - For decades, authors, attorneys, investigators and residents have speculated over who killed Martha Moxley in 1975. Now the only group that matters will try to resolve the intrigue. Attorneys were to begin questioning prospective jurors Tuesday at the start of the trial of Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel, who is accused of beating Moxley to death with a golf club in their wealthy Greenwich neighborhood. Both were 15 at the time. ``Our sights are higher than merely creating reasonable doubt,'' said defense attorney Michael Sherman. ``I would like the jury to go away feeling that Michael Skakel is truly innocent.'' Moxley's body was found on Halloween under a tree in her yard. She had been out the night before with other teens, including Skakel and his older brother, Thomas. Skakel, a nephew of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, was arrested in January 2000 after a one-judge grand jury investigated the murder. He was arraigned as a juvenile because of his age when the crime was committed, but the case was later transferred to adult court. If convicted, Skakel could face life in prison. Selecting a jury is expected to take a month or more, while the rest of the trial may take up to two months. Authorities say Skakel, now 41, confessed to the crime in the late 1970s while attending Elan School, a substance abuse facility in Poland Spring, Maine. Attention focused on Skakel in the 1990s after he changed his alibi when interviewed by a private investigative firm hired by his family. A day before jury selection was due to start in Norwalk Superior Court, Sherman appeared on several morning television shows. Prosecutors kept a lower profile. ``We're not going to discuss the case in the media. We're going to try the case in court,'' said Frank Garr, the state's lead investigator. Garr, who has investigated the case for years, said he's happy the trial has finally arrived. ``We're ready to go,'' Garr said. Sherman said his defense would involve more than poking holes in the prosecutor's case. ``We don't plan to sit there and be reactive,'' he said. Sherman would not provide any details of his strategy, including whether Skakel will take the stand. ``He's anxious but looking forward to being exonerated,'' Sherman said. John Moxley, Martha's brother, said Sherman should put Skakel on the stand if he wants to prove his innocence. He said his family is glad to finally have their day in court. ``I think it's kind of like Easter,'' Moxley said. ``It's a whole new beginning.''