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Jury selection starts in Johnson County murder case
The Kaniac City Star
By TONY RIZZO
Jury selection is set to begin this morning in a Johnson County murder case noteworthy for both its extreme brutality and the age of the defendant.
Court officials say they don't know of anyone older than Francis Patrick Doyle, 80, who has ever faced trial for murder in Johnson County.
Doyle Is accused in the February baseball bat attack on his friend, Marguerite Bacher-Kubik, and her new husband, Lawrence Kubik.
Doyle and Bacher-Kubik had been friends before her wedding last year, and he had sometimes looked after her house and dog when she traveled, relatives said.
On Feb. 4, Leawood police answered a 911 call from Bacher-Kubik and arrested Doyle, bat in hand, inside her house after officers broke through a front door and window according to testimony at an earlier court hearing.
Kubik and Bacher-Kubik, both 77, had been clubbed repeatedly in the face, head and torso. Lawrence Kubik died from his injuries two days later.
Bacher-Kubik remained hospitalized for months and is no longer capable of living independently in her own home, according to attorney David M. Peterson.
Peterson, who is representing Bacher-Kubik in a civil lawsuit fied against Doyle earlier this month, said she has suffered permanent injuries from the attack.
Doyle is charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and aggravated burglary.
Since his arrest, he has undergone court-ordered mental and neurological evaluations, and although he has been found competent to stand trial, his mental state is expected to be a key factor in the trial.
Defense attorney James R. Anderson has given notice that he will rely on a defense of Doyle's diminished mental capacity at the time of the attack.
The trial before District Judge William Cleaver is expected to last about a week.
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