The jury has been selected in the trial of Rashad Owens, the man charged with killing four people and injuring more than 20 others in a crash at the 2014 SXSW festival.
After one day of questioning 75 people, prosecutors and defense lawyers picked seven women, five men and two male alternates out of 280 candidates that they believed could render a fair verdict.
- Want more Downtown Austin news? Click here for our daily newsletter.
The 23-year-old man is charged with four counts of capital murder in the deaths of 35-year-old Steven Craenmehr of Amsterdam, Holland, Austin resident Jamie West, 27, DeAndre Tatum, 18, and Sandy Le, 26.
Find out what's happening in Austinfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Police said that Owens fled from an officer when he was pulled over at a gas station on the I-35 service road, drove the wrong way down Ninth Street - a one-way street - and through a SXSW barricade. Police said he then drove through a group of pedestrians standing outside of Mohawk, a popular bar and music venue, killing Craenmehr and West. Tatum and Le died from injuries in the days that followed. Owens is also charged with 24 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
After being treated and released for minor injuries sustained in the crash, Owens agreed to a breath test, which showed his blood-alcohol content as .114, according an arrest affidavit. The legal blood-alcohol limit in Texas in .08. He pled not guilty to the crash in September.
Find out what's happening in Austinfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Owens faces an automatic sentence of life without parole if convicted of capital murder. Should the jury not convict him, jurors can consider four lesser offenses of murder. Each murder offense carries a punishment of five years to life in prison.
The trial is expected to begin on Nov. 2.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
