Butler County Judge George Hancher didn't err in granting a continuance for the Jonathan Tusa murder trial, which was scheduled to begin with jury selection on July 18.

Tusa is accused of killing his wife and unborn child in a Dec. 12, 2004, shooting.

A glitch in the selection of a jury pool for the estimated three-week-long trial made it advisable for the judge to approve the trial delay rather than unnecessarily create a scenario on which an eventual appeal might be based.

The delay might create an inconvenience for some people who have been subpoenaed to testify, and who had planned their schedules around a July 18 start date, but this unfortunate consequence will have to be endured as part of the goal of achieving justice in the case.

The trial has been pushed back to September or October. Meanwhile, President Judge Thomas Doerr, who also is one of the county's three jury commissioners, said the jury pool selection problem occurred when computer software, in addition to "new" potential jurors, also selected people who had served on a jury within the past year.

State law limits people to one stint of jury service in a three-year time span.

Doerr said the problem with the software has been resolved and he said court officials had no reason to suspect that there have been problems regarding previous jury pools.

Still, it's reasonable, despite the judge's assurance, to urge that officials take extra care in the selection process to ensure that the problem doesn't repeat itself.

As noted in an article in Thursday's Butler Eagle, state law says more jurors could be summoned immediately from the court or community-at-large, should trial lawyers exhaust a jury pool that, in Butler County murder cases, has traditionally been in the hundreds.

The Tusa jury pool glitch, which involved 29 people, coupled with 16 people who had legitimate excuses for not being part of the pool, such as an illness in the family, had reduced the Tusa jury pool to 155 people — less than what the court and lawyers deemed advisable.

While the Butler County Court administration on Monday had offered to summon additional eligible people for the case, officials said that decision would have had to be made and finished by day's end, in order to comply with state law requiring at least 30 days' notice to potential jurors as to when they would be required to serve.

Defense attorney Richard Goldinger told the court he did not believe that the small juror pool time window was sufficient for the July start date and requested that the trial be continued. He also suggested that giving jurors such short notice that they would have to block off three weeks from their summer schedules or plans might prejudice some jurors unfairly against Tusa.

It was on that point that the window for an appeal seemed to open, if Tusa were to be convicted.

The Tusa jury is to consist of 17 people — a 12-person jury and five alternates. Members of the jury pool will undergo rigorous questioning in an effort to determine whether there are any prejudices or opinions that could adversely come into play to the benefit or detriment of the prosecution or defense.

Tusa has the right to a trial before an unbiased jury. As with any other defendant, he is innocent until proven guilty.

Hancher's decision helps ensure that will indeed happen, but there must not be further delays based on problems that could be avoided if closer attention were directed at the jury pool selection function and other aspects of the case.