Jury Selection to Get Underway in James 'Whitey' Bulger Trial

Jury selection is slated to begin Tuesday in the trial of alleged mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger, who was arrested in 2011 in Santa Monica.

The Top Ten Fugitive is being tried for his role in 19 murders. Bulger, 83, was on the run for 16 years before the FBI received a tip about his whereabouts from an Icelandic woman who lives part time in Santa Monica.

The trial is expected to last about three months in Boston, and testimony will continue into September, according to the Boston Globe. It will be a challenge to find 18 people—12 jurors and 6 alternates—who will be impartial in such a high profile and publicized case and who are able to spend the entire summer away from work.

Following his arrest, Santa Monica residents speculated for months about why he remained undetected in their city for nearly 15 years. Bulger and his girlfriend Catherine Greig lived in an apartment near Third and Washington in Santa Monica and paid their rent in cash.

Bulger was the inspiration for Jack Nicholson's character in the Martin Scorcese thriller The Departed, and the subject of multiple books.

-Sommerville Patch Editor Chris Orchard contributed to this report. Read