04/28/09 Bend
 
Jury selection began Tuesday in the case of a horse shot and left for dead in the Sisters wilderness. 27 year old Russell Daniel Willeford from Banks, Oregon is on trial for Animal Abuse, Animal Neglect, Theft, and Criminal Mischief all in the first degree. Willeford was the head of the horse program at Camp Tamarack where the horse named Nikko lived. He was renamed Trooper after he was found with a gun shot wound to his head last October in the Sisters wilderness.
 
No cameras are allowed in the courtroom during jury selection which has taken all day. "We're just simply trying to ask questions and get some input about people's backgrounds," said Defense Attorney Joel Wirtz.
 
The defense attorney spent a good deal of time asking potential jurors on their feelings about killing animals, including their thoughts on the Disney movie Old Yeller in which the owner kills the dog infected with rabies. The prosecution then asked jurors about whether they would consult a vet when deciding to put animals down. "We just want to make sure that people are not going to base their decisions on what they heard before and what other people said," said Wirtz.
 
The defense has also asked that pictures of the injuries to the horse be omitted from the trial.
 
Trooper-- now named Hero lives at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch where he has recovered though he did receive permanent damage to one eye that his caretakers say won't impact his quality of life.
 
The trial is expected to end early next week.