Jury selection begins in trial of Gerald Goines for botched Harding St. raid that left couple dead
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- More than five years after a couple was killed in their own home during a botched no-knock raid, the trial for the officer in charge is expected to begin.
Jury selection in the trial for disgraced Houston Police Department officer Gerald Goines is scheduled to begin on Friday. He's charged with two counts of murder.
As part of the selection, 120 potential jurors will fill out questionnaires. Then on Monday, voir dire begins, which is when the defense and the state examine the potential jurors.
On Tuesday, individual voir dire begins. Questioning the potential jurors one at a time is normally reserved for death penalty trials, or in this case, highly-publicized media cases.
Three months ago, the indictments against Goines were dropped after his attorneys argued they were poorly written. However, he was re-indicted a week later.
SEE ALSO: Murder charges for couple killed in botched 2019 no-knock raid reinstated against HPD officer
It all started over five years ago on Jan. 28, 2019. A fake 911 call resulted in a no-knock warrant from HPD's narcotics squad at the home of husband and wife Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas. The Harding Street raid left Tuttle, Nicholas, and their dog dead from a rain of police gunfire in their own Pecan Park home.
Prosecutors say Goines -- the lead HPD agent involved in the raid -- lied about drug activity at the house to obtain the initial warrant.
There have been countless hearings and court appearances in the case, which has dragged on for half of a decade.
Tuttle and Nicholas' families tell ABC13 they're tired of the back and forth and want the names of their loved ones cleared.
RELATED: Charges dropped against several HPD officers involved in botched Harding Street raid
On Monday, prosecutors were dealt a setback when charges against several other officers involved in the raid were dropped. The officers were previously charged in an alleged overtime scheme related to the raid.
The judge ruled that the indictments were too broad. She made a similar ruling on the Goines murder charges back in March, but the Harris County District Attorney's Office presented the case once again in front of a grand jury, and Goines was indicted again for murder.
Voire dire is expected to take six weeks, and Goines' trial is expected to begin in September.
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