On Friday, Special Counsel Robert Mueller filed a response to Paul Manafort's bid to move his upcoming Washington, DC trial to Roanoke, VA, saying the court should reject the request.
Attorneys for Donald Trump’s former presidential campaign chairman asked U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson on Aug. 29 to shift the trial 230 miles (370 kilometers) southwest of the nation’s capital, contending that the local jury pool would be biased against him by the media coverage. Their argument was grounded in the size of the TV markets: the Washington metro area is the country’s sixth biggest while Roanoke ranks 70th according to Nielsen data.
Mueller instead said in Friday’s filing that Manafort’s assertions tying the TV market size to news consumption “are open to doubt, and his speculation about the likely propensities of jurors in this district is unfounded.” Manafort’s team also pointed to Washington voters skewing largely Democrat. Mueller said biased jurors can be weeded out during the selection process with proper questioning.
Jury selection is set to begin September 17th with opening arguments expected one week later.
Mueller Opposes Manafort Bid to Move Second Trial to Roanoke (Bloomberg Politics)