Judge in Norwood Trial Strikes Some Photos from Opening Arguments

Only some hand-selected photos will be allowed for opening arguments Wednesday at the trial of Brittany Norwood, , Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Robert A. Greenberg said Tuesday.

Norwood’s defense team objected to Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy using the photos, arguing that they would taint the jury’s ability to fairly hear the rest of the case.

The photos are integral to building the case that Norwood used multiple weapons to kill Jayna Murray, McCarthy said.

Of the photos McCarthy requested be used, the three most controversial were autopsy photos of Murray showing her skull. The prosecution cropped the photos to depersonalize them, McCarthy said, but Greenberg wasn’t convinced.

“The photos are gruesome,” Greenberg said. “I’m concerned the jury is going to be immediately disturbed and cause them to not think about anything else.

Greenberg only allowed one of the autopsy photos. Three other photos, including a photo of the body of Murray at the crime scene, a photo of Norwood at the crime scene and a photo of Murray while she was alive were also allowed.

This does not mean the photos will be disallowed after opening statements if they are entered in as evidence, Greenberg said.

from around 300 potenital jurors to 65 potential jurors. That number will be whittled down to 12 jurors and five alternates Wednesday morning.