ORLANDO, Fla. _ As attorneys in the case against Noor Salman have sifted through dozens of potential jurors during the trial's first week, many have been excluded because they couldn't shake the feeling that Salman played a part in her husband's plot.
On Friday, a possible juror was sent home for the opposite reason: She was convinced that Salman is innocent.
"I just don't think she knew about it," the woman said. "I really don't."
During the seventh day of Salman's trial, the pool of potential jurors to try the case against the widow of Pulse nightclub gunman Omar Mateen had grown to 55 _ one shy of 56, the goal U.S. District Judge Paul Byron had set before the case will move to its next stage.
Jury selection will resume Monday.
The juror who said Salman was innocent was sent home. Also among those excused from the trial was a graphic designer for a local news station, who said he had transcribed 911 calls from the shooting.
One woman, an event planner, said she recalled seeing someone on television pose the question, "How could you not know your husband was planning this attack?" The juror said she believed it is possible for a spouse to keep secrets.
"People lead double lives," she said.
The woman was dismissed, however, after saying the news coverage of the case she saw would likely be in the back of her mind during the trial, if chosen.
Also sent home was a woman from Colombia, who said the thought of serving on the jury in the mass shooting case brought back memories of violence in her home country.
Those kept in the jury pool included a woman who works in medical sales, an accountant and a mental health therapist.
Christine Leinonen, whose son Drew Leinonen was killed in the mass shooting at Pulse, was in the courtroom for jury selection Friday morning. She dabbed her eyes with a tissue when a potential juror talked about seeing the news the morning after the shooting.
Leinonen said she viewed the Pulse attack as motivated by Mateen's distorted view of the Islamic faith _ and enabled by his easy access to guns.
"Whatever their (attackers') reasons are behind the mass shootings, there (is) easy access to high powered weapons so they can maximize their damage," she said.
For her, Leinonen said her son's death was the equivalent of a life sentence, despite having not committed any crime.
"My son has never committed a crime in his whole life and he got the death penalty," she added.
The trial's first week has seen a stream of potential jurors face questions from attorneys and Byron, on topics ranging from their knowledge about the Pulse shooting, in which 49 people were killed and dozens more injured; their feelings about terrorism, guns and President Donald Trump; and their ability to be impartial in deciding Salman's fate.
Salman is charged with aiding and abetting her husband and with obstruction of justice.
She faces the possibility of life in prison if convicted as charged.
