The jury selection process began Monday for the case against Cylar Shemwell, who is going to trial this month for his alleged role in a 2019 triple homicide on Audubon Avenue.
Shemwell is facing three counts of murder for the shooting deaths of Robert D. Smith Jr., 35; Jay Michael Sowders, 43; and Christopher Carie, 18. He also faces a first-degree assault charge because a fourth person, Carman Vanegas, who was 35 at the time, was also shot in the head but survived.
The jury selection process for Shemwell’s trial is expected to take 3 weeks before they have developed the 14-person jury to listen to the case.
Last month, the death penalty was taken off the table as an option if the jury were to reach a guilty verdict. That move came after Arnett Baines pleaded guilty to the same charges by accepting an agreement that included a sentence of 25 years to life without parole.
In their motion, the defense team said that in light of Baines’ plea agreement, the death penalty should not be an option because it would be “a cruel and unusual punishment of a non-shooter.”
Commonwealth’s Attorney Mike Van Meter previously said the new recommended sentence options for a guilty verdict in each murder count will be:
- Imprisonment for life without the benefit of probation and parole
- Imprisonment for life without the benefit of probation or parole until the defendant has served at least 25 years
- Life in prison for 20 to 50 years
