The trial of a Waterloo man who’s accused of murdering a Mason City man is scheduled to start today and will be held in a courtroom that’s causing discussion in the legal community. Twenty-three-year-old James Farnsworth is charged with first-degree murder after the stabbing death of 23-year-old Ian Decker back on April 14th outside a house in the eastern part of Mason City.
Jury selection will start today at the Cerro Gordo County Courthouse, with the trial then moving to the county’s Law Enforcement Center for testimony. District Judge Colleen Weiland says testimony is being moved to the Law Enforcement Center due to space limitations at the courthouse.
There have been concerns in the past about using the courtroom at the Law Enforcement Center that opened five years ago due to a possible prejudicial nature of holding a criminal trial at the courtroom that is connected to the county jail.
By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City