Jurors 'relieved' Ferrell pleads guilty

Deborah Young reported for jury selection last week not expecting to be on the panel hearing Myisha L. Ferrell's case.

And when Young ended up on the jury, she was anxious about having to hear graphic details about the death of Jessie M. Davis and her unborn daughter, Chloe.

So, when Ferrell pleaded guilty this morning to obstructing justice and complicity to gross abuse of a corpse, Young didn't mind.

"To be quite honest, I was actually relieved," she said.

Young, of Massillon, was one of 12 jurors and two alternates selected for Ferrell's trial from a pool of roughly 300 registered voters. More than 100 prospective jurors reported to the Stark County Courthouse last week for the final selection.

"I kept looking around, thinking, 'It probably won't be me,'" Young said.

But it was, and Monday she reported for duty, expecting court to start at 8:30 a.m.

When that time came and went, the jurors started wondering what was going on. One guessed that Ferrell might have changed her plea.

A few minutes later, Common Pleas Judge Charles E. Brown Jr. met the jurors and gave them the news. He thanked them for their service and fielded questions about the sentence and the plea.

Christopher Balow said his fellow jurors accepted the case not going forward. The Lake Township man anticipated being in court for a week, and while he was interested in seeing a trial and learning more about the case, returning to regular life was a relief, he said.

Alternate juror Judith Bender, also of Lake Township, said she was looking forward to getting back to her nursing job.

"At least I know I'll be ineligible for the other trial," she said.

Reach Repository writer Shane Hoover at (330) 580-8338 or e-mail shane.hoover@cantonrep.com.