INTRODUCTION

Good morning. I’m The Skeptical Juror.

It’s Monday morning, April 29, 2002. We’re at the Jackson County
Courthouse in Kansas City, Missouri. It’s a beautiful, clear day
today. Temperature at the moment is only 52 degrees, but it’s
supposed to warm to 70 by this afternoon.
Today, Byron Case goes on trial for the murder of Anastasia
WitbolsFeugen. He was arrested almost a year ago after his ex-
girlfriend accused him of shooting Anastasia in the head with a
shotgun.
Within just a few pages, you and I will become players in a three-
act drama based on the actual first-degree murder trial of Byron
Case. We will assume the role of jurors. Be pleased by that, for it
is an honor and privilege to perform as a juror.
In Act I, The Trial, we will hear the same testimony heard by the
actual jurors. We will be given the same jury instructions. We will
hear the same closing arguments. We will then retire to decide
the fate of Byron Case.
In Act II, Deliberations, we will deliberate the evidence. Based on
those deliberations, we will each decide our vote. As you ponder
how you would have voted, I implore you to consider the weight
and solemnity of your oath. A victim awaits justice. A man’s life
and freedom are at stake.
In Act III, Aftermath, we’ll learn of the actual verdict in the trial of
Missouri v. Byron Case. I will reveal the story behind the
evidence, and share the shocking conclusion.
Only in the last few pages of this book will we be able to decide if
we played our roles well.

So who am I? Who is The Skeptical Juror?
To begin with, I am a juror. I’ve served jury duty more than most.
I’ve been summoned more than ten times. I can’t recall how
many more precisely, just that there were more than ten. I’ve
been called enough times that I’ve lost track.
I’ve been called to the jury box seven times for voir dire. Voir dire
is the process by which the attorneys question potential jurors
before the trial and attempt to tailor the final jury to their
advantage.
I have actually served on a jury four times, all criminal cases, all
felonies. I was an alternate during my first trial, a drive-by
shooting in which the victim was wounded in the right buttock. I
had no role in deciding that case. On the up side, I didn’t need to
examine photos of the wound.
The charges for the other three cases were murder, spousal
battery, and child molestation. The last trial was a life-changing
event. It led me to write this literary recreation of an actual trial,
the one in which we are now to act as jurors.
I choose to perform my role as juror as a skeptical juror. As such,
I will distrust the prosecution and the defense, the judge, and the
witnesses. I will also question my own biases. Each may attempt
to deceive and manipulate me. With all this in mind, I will
scrutinize all testimony and physical evidence for errors,
inconsistencies, and logical fallacies. I will attempt to be
unmoved by the drama of the courtroom, or by the theatrics of
the attorneys. I may be brought to tears by the pain of crimes
past or the fear of liberty lost, both of which can be palpable in a
courtroom, but I will not allow the pathos to deter me from my
solemn duty.
As a skeptical juror, I will truly and without reservation grant the
defendant the presumption of innocence. My default vote will be
Not Guilty. I will change that to Guilty only if the State proves
each and every element of its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Under no circumstance will I relieve the State of its burden of
proof.
As the trial progresses, I will advocate for neither the prosecution
nor the defense. Instead I will recognize the public’s right to be
secure in their persons and their homes while defending the
defendant’s rights as granted by our Constitution.
Most jurors believe they adhere to these precepts. Experience
cautions me otherwise.
But I am not simply a skeptical juror. I am The Skeptical Juror, as
if there is but one. To be sure, there are many other jurors who
apply a high level of skepticism when adjudicating a case. I fear
they are too few, but the existence of just one other is sufficient
to prove I am not The Only Skeptical Juror. I use the title simply
because it is more marketable than A Skeptical Juror. And
because it’s cooler.

Trials can be tedious. Reading trial transcripts can be even more
so. I want to preserve the integrity of the testimony and the
arguments presented here, but I want to spare you the tedium.
To this end, I have a plan.
I will spare you the voir dire and the judges’ introductory
comments. There will be no opening or closing statements. They
tend to be long and boring, and in theory they should not matter.
The jury instructions will tell you that the opening statements are
not evidence, and they will not be presented here. If you, my
fellow juror, wish to subject yourself to the ungrammatical arm-
waving of the attorneys, the opening statements and all other
documents associated with this trial are available on The
Skeptical Juror website at www.skepticaljuror.com. Otherwise,
you will be spared.
Because of my concern for you, the reader and my fellow literary
juror, I will skip all that tedium and instead begin with the
testimony of the first witness. That will be Detective David
Epperson. He found Anastasia’s body early that morning in
Lincoln Cemetery.
During witness testimony, some parts will be presented in
question and answer format, and some in third person narrative.
Extended stretches of question and answer format can be painful
to follow.
For most of the witness testimony, it will seem as if the witness is
simply telling you what happened. Most minor errors of grammar
have been corrected, again to ease the reading. For those of you
wishing to read the unadulterated transcripts, those too are
available on The Skeptical Juror website.
To preserve the integrity of the testimony, I will incorporate the
attorney questions into the narrative. The testimony will unfold
before you in the same sequence it unfolded before the actual
jury.
When the judge or the attorneys speak, their words will be
enclosed in quotes.
When my thoughts intrude, as they are now, they will appear in
italics. I will manage them best I can, but they are frequently
mischievous and sometimes a bit revealing. We all know how
difficult it can be to control one’s thoughts.

Ready? Okay then. Sit back, take a deep breath, and turn the
page. The bailiff is about to call the courtroom to order.