Joe Clyde Daniels case: Jury selection begins for Joseph Daniels trial

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Jury selection begins Tuesday in the case of Joseph Daniels, the Dickson County man accused of killing his 5-year-old son, Joe Clyde.

It will be a long, busy day in a courtroom as the defense and prosecution begin the process of voir dire, which is Latin for “speak the truth” and the term used for jury selection. Remember, they are in Chattanooga to select the jury for this trial in Dickson County.

A large pool of some 100 prospective jurors have been assembled with the goal of finding 12 jurors and at least two alternates.

They hope to find folks who are not as well-versed in the high-profile Joe Clyde Daniels case. That doesn't mean you can't have heard about the case, just that you haven't made up your mind about the guilt or innocence about the father charged with murder.

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Once the jury is selected, they will be brought to Dickson County by bus and sequestered for the duration of the trial.

Jury selection could take between two and three days. If that holds to form, opening statements for the trial will likely begin Thursday or Friday.

The big question: How can the District Attorney get a guilty verdict when he has no body or physical evidence to even prove five-year-old Joe Clyde Daniels was killed?

Can they even prove he is dead much less that his father killed him?

It seems all the DA has is the father’s confession, which he's recanted claiming he was coerced. The DA will need something more to back up the confession as credible. Of course, he’ll play video of the confession for the jury.

And now NewsChannel 5 has learned there is a good chance he’ll call Joe Clyde’s older brother. Remember, his two brothers, ages three and eight at the time, were there that night sleeping with little Joe.

The older brother is now 11, and it is believed he witnessed something that happened.

He was questioned early on in the investigation, but his responses I’m told made little sense -- as though he either did not see anything or was in shock. I’ve learned in the three years since, his memory has improved, and in recent months he has shared new details about what happened the night Joe Clyde disappeared.

So, he could be a crucial eyewitness against his own father.

Nick Beres and legal analyst Nick Leonardo preview what we can expect this week: