Jury Selection Begins Today in Wayland Murder Trial
Nathaniel Fujita will face trial beginning today in the 2011 murder of Lauren Astley, whose body was found on the Sudbury/Wayland line.
A courtroom at Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn will today see a host of potential jurors for the trial of Nathaniel Fujita, the Wayland man accused of brutally killing his ex-girlfriend and fellow Wayland High School Class of 2011 graduate Lauren Astley.
Fujita's lawyer, William Sullivan, has preemptively filed the paperwork for a possible change of venue should the defense and prosecution be unable to seat a panel of jurors given the substantial press this case receives since Astley's murder on July 3, 2011. Astley's body was found in a swampy area off Water Row in Wayland, near the Sudbury line.
Patch will be covering the trial, much as we have as the legal process has unfolded throughout the past 19 months since Fujita's arrest. Below is a brief recap of the process that has brought the case to this point.
- Wayland Man Arrest and Charged with Murder of Lauren Astley (July 5, 2011)
- Nathaniel Fujita Charged With Ex-Girlfriend Lauren Astley's Murder (July 5, 2011)
- Wayland Murder Suspect Ordered Held Without Bail (July 5, 2011)
- Wayland Suspect Indicted for Murder, Other Charges (Aug. 4, 2011)
- Prosecution: Strength of Case Against Wayland Murder Suspect ‘Formidable’ (July 23, 2011)
- Prosecution’s Timeline of Events in Wayland Murder (Aug. 24, 2011)
- Prosecution Obtains DNA Sample from Wayland Murder Suspect (Nov. 1, 2011)
- Computer, Phone Records Part of Discovery Hearing in Murder Case (April 24, 2012)
- Fujita Returns to Court for Evidentiary Suppression Hearing (June 11, 2012)
- Trial in Wayland Murder Delayed Until Early Next Year (Aug. 7, 2012)
- Counsel Paves the Way for Insanity Defense in Wayland Murder Case (Sept. 6, 2012)
- Fujita Asks for New Lawyer in Murder Trial (Oct. 1, 2012)
- Fujita Retains Current Lawyer, Judge Hears Motions About Psychiatric Evaluation (Oct. 19, 2012)
- New Trial Date Set in Wayland Murder Case (Nov. 16, 2012)
- Judge Hears Witness Sequestering, Other Motions in Final Pre-Trial Hearing (Jan. 28, 2013)
- Prosecutor: Fujita's Behavior at 2009, 2011 Wayland Parties is Relevant (Jan. 29, 2013)