BOULDER, Colo. — Jury selection began Monday in the trial of Ahmad Alissa, whose attorneys have acknowledged shot and killed 10 people in March 2021 at a Boulder King Soopers store.
The jury commissioner for Boulder County summoned a total of 1,500 prospective jurors, who arrived in groups over several days this week to fill out an extensive questionnaire. Prosecutors and defense attorneys will review their answers, and it’s likely a number of people will be dismissed from the jury pool based on their answers.
Then on Tuesday, a group of those who remain will head to a courtroom to continue the process during voir dire – where they will face questions from the judge, from the prosecutors, and from defense attorneys.
That process is expected to take at least two days – maybe longer. Once it wraps up and a jury is seated, the trial will begin in earnest with opening statements.
Ahmad Alissa faces 10 counts of first-degree murder and 54 other charges in the March 22, 2021, shooting at King Soopers at 3600 Table Mesa Drive in Boulder.
His attorneys entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity – in other words, they acknowledged that he killed the victims but will present evidence that he didn’t know the difference between right and wrong when he pulled the trigger.
“Considering the size of Boulder and the fact that the case got so much publicity, I think 1,500 is probably the minimum that the judge thinks is going to be needed,” said attorney Scott Robinson, a 9NEWS legal analyst.
There is no perfect juror – but Robinson said the two sides will be trying to seat people based on competing goals.
Prosecutors, for instance, will want jurors who “understand psychological testimony,” to a point.
“In an insanity case, what prosecutors are always worried about is having someone on the jury that thinks they’re an amateur psychologist or psychiatrist,” Robinson said.
For defense attorneys, the ideal juror may not exist.
“That would be someone who would be sympathetic to someone charged with this type of heinous crime, who obviously has some sort of psychological issues, whether it rises to the level of legal insanity or not,” Robinson said.
Defense attorneys also are likely to be more concerned about what jurors will see and hear on body camera and surveillance footage.
“In general, the defense lawyers are more concerned with jurors being shocked and horrified by images of violence than are prosecutors,” Robinson said.
With the shooter’s plea, defense attorneys must present credible evidence the man was insane on the day of the attack, but they do not carry the burden to prove it. Instead, prosecutors have the burden of proving that he was sane at the time for the crime.
The trial comes three and a half years after the killings.
That’s because the criminal case stalled for more than two years after multiple doctors reported that the man was not mentally competent to stand trial – meaning he could not understand the proceedings and assist in his own defense.
After treatment and medication, the judge ruled in the fall of 2023 that the man’s competency had been restored.
If found guilty of any of the murder charges, the man would be sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison with no chance of parole. If he were to be found not guilty by reason of insanity, he could be committed to a mental institution, where he would be treated until he was deemed no longer a danger to himself or others.
Contact 9NEWS investigator Kevin Vaughan with tips about this or any story: kevin.vaughan@9news.com or 303-871-1862.