Jury Selection Begins In Lululemon Murder Trial

Brittany Norwood sat in the Montgomery County court room Tuesday with little emotion on her face as the selection of 12 people who will decide her fate got under way. Norwood is accused of killing her coworker at a Lululemon yoga store in Bethesda in March.

About 150 jurors were interviewed on questions like race and their views on police testimony. Norwood faces a first-degree murder charge and the judge says the selection of jurors will be difficult. He banned jurors from watching television, using the internet, and even engaging in social media, because he doesn't want them to read information about the case while it's on-going.

That may prove to be a difficult task, because when he asked the group whether they had already heard of Norwood and the allegations that she had murdered her Lululemon co-worker, more than three-quarters of the room stood up.

Norwood was initially considered a victim in a brutal robbery at the athletic apparel store, as she had been found at the downtown Bethesda store tied up and covered in blood. Police also found the body of her coworker, Jayna Murray, in the store, and Norwood told authorities two masked men had entered the store late one night and attacked and sexually assaulted the two women.

But less than a week later, police said Norwood’s story was a lie and charged her with beating and stabbing Murray to death and then trying to cover up the crime.

Norwood has pleaded not guilty.  The trial is expected to last eight to ten days.