SAN DIEGO — Jury selection began Wednesday morning in the trial against a doctor and nurse accused of involuntary manslaughter in the death of a 24-year-old inmate at Las Colinas Jail.
Dr. Friederike Von Lintig and nurse Danalee Pascua are accused of negligence in the 2019 death of Elisa Serna, an inmate who was pregnant when she died.
Cameras were not allowed inside the courtroom.
The judge told the potential jurors the trial is expected to last at least four weeks. Elisa Serna's mother, Paloma Serna, sat in the courtroom during jury selection.
Some of the questions that were asked by the judge included:
- What do you do for a living?
- What does your spouse do for a living?
- Do you have children?
- Do you have family or friends in law enforcement?
The potential jurors are from all different walks of life and all different professions including the medical field, consultants, salesmen, retired police officers, ex-military.
The judge also asked the potential jurors if they had sat on a jury before and if they had any formal legal training.
"You want jurors who are going to keep an open mind, weigh the expert testimony and come to a fair decision," said Marc Carlos, a longtime criminal defense attorney. He is not connected to the case.
"Anytime you have doctors who are accused of omitting or neglecting a duty to a level of criminal culpability, that's a very very serious case. And it's really difficult, sometimes, to prove," he added.
The trial is expected to begin sometime next week.
WATCH RELATED: Doctor charged with involuntary manslaughter for jail death at Las Colinas
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