Judge, not jury, to decide Banita Jacks case
By: Freeman Klopott
Examiner Staff Writer
July 2, 2009
Banita Jacks, accused of killing her four daughters and leaving them to decompose in her Southeast Washington home, requested and received a bench trial Thursday over the objections of her attorneys. The trial is scheduled to begin July 13. District Superior Court Judge Frederick Weisberg questioned Jacks about the decision, but she said she fully understood the difference between a jury and bench trial.
The bodies of Jacks’ daughters — ages 5 to 17 — were found in her home in January 2008 when she was served with an eviction notice. Authorities say the children were killed months earlier.
Jacks has pleaded not guilty to premeditated first-degree murder. Peter Krauthamer, the public defender appointed to Jacks’ case, objected to the request for a bench trial. Krauthamer asked Weisberg to delay the trial for a mental evaluation, but Weisberg said Jacks appeared lucid.
Jacks, 33, told the judge she had missed meetings with her attorneys because she had been fasting and praying.
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