One trial, two cities: federal judge issues new restrictive rules in second Prairieland trial
The next trial for the so-called "Prairieland defendants" is going to play out in not one but two courthouses.
A new order from Judge Mark Pittman says while voir dire will take place in the federal courthouse in Fort Worth, anyone who wants to watch it will have to drive to the federal courthouse in Dallas. The remote viewing location is approximately 32 miles from the trial itself.
Nine men and women are on trial, facing a variety of federal charges, accused of being part of a "North Texas Antifa cell."
According to court documents, the group attacked the Prairieland detention center in Alvarado last July, setting off fireworks, vandalizing property, and shooting at police officers who responded. One officer was hit in the neck and survived.
Mistrial declared in alleged attack on officers at North Texas ICE facility
The first trial ended virtually before it began last Tuesday.
Judge Mark Pittman declared a mistrial after discovering that a defense attorney was wearing a graphic t-shirt depicting civil rights protestors. The shirt violated the court's rules of conduct.
Now, in the second trial, all of the attorneys have lost the right to question prospective jurors. Instead, they submitted written questions to the judge, who will decide what gets asked. And the defense teams, which had been given 10 minutes for each opening statement, now have just 8 minutes.
Federal vs. state court trials
Fort Worth attorney Benson Varghese says federal court is much different from state court.
"It's essentially a trial that's run by the judge," said Varghese. "And the judge has a lot of discretion in limiting the parties, in particular, giving time limits or limits on the questions that can be presented."
According to Varghese, there are no guarantees for either side. The judge can interrupt questioning or even eliminate opening statements, if he or she sees fit.
"What that really means is nothing is going to get overturned as being unfavorable to the defendant unless there's something that rises to the level of abuse of discretion," Varghese said. "Which is very hard to judge."
Varghese says many federal judges focus on time limits because jurors may have a longer distance to travel.
"Although it's named the Fort Worth division, it covers Tarrant, Hood, Parker, Somervell, Johnson, and Erath counties," he said. "So potential jurors are coming in from all of these counties."
The focus on efficiency may also be driving the choice to try nine people at once, said Varghese. That way witnesses would be called one time, to one trial, instead of nine. Each defense team will get a chance at cross-examination, though Varghese says it is unlikely that all nine would take a turn.
"The first attorney is likely to ask the most questions, and the subsequent attorneys are not going to ask repetitive questions, and they'll focus on things that haven't been addressed yet," Varghese said. "So if you're number nine on the list, it may turn out you're sitting there for the entire trial without asking questions."
Pittman had moved the first trial to the largest courtroom in the Fort Worth building. He has since reversed that move, going back to his smaller courtroom, and cautioning that anyone who doesn't get a seat will have to make the drive to Dallas.
According to his order, "considering the Fort Worth Division's very busy docket, no overflow space is available for the entirety of the trial."
The Prairieland trial is expected to last up to three weeks.