WAUKESHA - The trial of Jessy Kurczewski, a Franklin woman accused of using eye drops to poison and kill a woman she was caring for, began Monday with jury selection at the Waukesha County Courthouse.
A jury of 12 people, plus four alternates, were selected from a pool of 49 potential jurors who faced questions about their ability to decide the case impartially.
Prosecutors have said Kurczewski, 39, killed her family friend, Lynn Hernan, 62, of Pewaukee, in 2018 and stole nearly $300,000 from her. Kurczewski has pleaded not guilty.
Six women and 10 men make up the final group of 16 jurors. They will decide on three charges against Kurczewski: First-degree intentional homicide, theft of movable property greater than $100,000 in value, and theft of movable property between $10,000 and $100,000 in value, according to online court records.
Here's what to know about the first day of the trial:
Judge Jennifer Dorow asked jurors questions about assisted suicide, financial crimes
In a process known as voir dire, Circuit Court Judge Jennifer Dorow asked potential jurors several questions to determine if they could consider the facts of the case fairly.
Dorow, who also presided over the Waukesha Christmas Parade attack trial of Darrell Brooks, asked jurors if they had strong opinions on assisted suicide, if they liked to gamble and how much they would reasonably spend at a casino, and if they had experience caring for another person.
She also asked if jurors knew someone who doesn't take medications as prescribed, if they knew anyone with alcoholism, and if they had seen anyone mix alcohol with pills, among other questions.
Jurors also answered whether they had been the victim of financial crime or theft, and if they had ever helped someone else with their finances.
Prominence of Jessy Kurczewski 'eye drops' case discussed
Kurczewski's case has garnered substantial interest and news coverage. Court TV will begin broadcasting the trial Tuesday.
From the pool of 49 potential jurors, 12 people said they recognized Kurczewski, who wore a gray sweater and black pants in court Monday. About a half-dozen said they already believed she was guilty and couldn't set it aside, and they were removed from the jury pool.
Dorow rose to prominence last year for presiding over Brooks' trial. Online livestreams and Court TV broadcasts of the weeks-long trial drew large audiences, and Dorow later mounted an unsuccessful bid for the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Dorow instructed the jurors not to watch or read any coverage of Kurczewski's trial and not to discuss it with anyone.
What are the details of Lynn Hernan's death?
According to the criminal complaint:
Police received a call on Oct. 3, 2018, from Kurczewski saying her friend, Hernan, wasn't conscious or breathing. She told authorities she’d been checking on Hernan daily and her behavior had been odd the week before.
Officers dispatched to Meadow Grass Circle in Pewaukee found Hernan unconscious in a recliner with crushed medication on her chest and on a plate nearby. Prescription bottles were also near her.
Hernan wasn't identified in the criminal complaint. But an obituary lists a date of death matching Hernan's, and property records indicate Hernan was the resident of the Pewaukee home where she was found dead. Other news outlets have also reported Hernan's identity.
Kurczewski said there was “a possibility” Hernan was suicidal. However, others who knew the victim told authorities they didn’t think she would “intentionally or unintentionally overdose.”
Initially, Hernan's death was believed to be a drug overdose. However, it was soon ruled a homicide when the Waukesha County medical examiner found the victim had a fatal amount of tetrahydrozoline, the main ingredient in the eyedrops, in her system. The examiner said to reach those levels, it was “impossible” to have just been used in the eyes.
Kurczewski was arrested in July 2019 in Hernan's death.
What is Jessy Kurczewski’s defense?
Kurczewski denied killing Hernan, assisting in or staging her death but said she’d “saved” the victim from herself in the past.
Kurczewski told police Hernan was known to purchase a great volume of eyedrops. In a later interview, she told detectives the woman drank Visine with vodka before her death. Kurczewski said she had brought Hernan a water bottle with Visine in it at her request.
As she’d been “drinking it regularly for so long,” Kurczewski said she didn’t think it would kill her.
More:Meet the key figures in Jessy Kurczewski's 'eye drops' homicide trial
Did Jessy Kurczewski admit to the crime in jail?
While in the Waukesha County Jail, Kurczewski told investigators she was “probably going to prison for the rest of her life” because she helped Hernan “do what she wanted.”
Later, Kurczewski allegedly had a breakdown while at Taycheedah Correctional Institution and told her roommate she gave Hernan “several bottles of Visine to kill her.”
It was also discovered that Hernan's financial activity changed over time as her contact with Kurczewski increased. It began to closely resemble Kurczewski’s, according to the complaint, which also said Kurczewski had a gambling problem and committed fraud multiple times before.
What's next in the Jessy Kurczewski 'eye drops' trial?
Tuesday morning, Dorow will rule on a number of motions from the attorneys, Deputy District Attorney Abbey Nickolie and defense attorney Donna Kuchler.
Opening statements will begin in the afternoon, and prosecutors could call their first witnesses later in the day.
The trial is scheduled to last five weeks.
