Expand / Collapse search
☰

Cledir Barros: Jury selection to begin in 3rd child cruelty trial of Gwinnett County father

By FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
Published  September 9, 2024 6:05am EDT
Gwinnett County
FOX 5 Atlanta

Third trial to begin for Gwinnett father

Cledir Barros faces a child cruelty charge in connection to the death of his eight-year-old daughter Sayra back in January. Two juries have already heard the case - both came back deadlocked.

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. - Jury selection is set to begin for the third time in the child cruelty trial of a Gwinnett County father in connection with his 8-year-old daughter's death.

Cledir Barros faces a child cruelty charge in connection to the death of his eight-year-old daughter Sayra back in January. His wife Natiela, Sayra's stepmother, is accused of beating her to death with a rolling pin.

Prosecutors say Barros didn't do enough to protect his daughter, but the defense says he didn't know any abuse was happening in his home.

RELATED: Cledir Barros child cruelty retrial: Second mistrial declared

Two juries previously failed to reach a unanimous verdict. The first deadlocked at 11-1 and the second at 7-5, causing the judges to declare a mistrial. Now, prosecutors plan to try again with a third trial.

The second mistrial came just hours after the judge decided to remove a jury member after the juror admitted to looking up the word "neglect" in the dictionary and bringing the definition to court.

The juror in question reportedly took this action because English is his second language. The judge expressed concerns that this could affect the jury's ability to determine the fate of Barros fairly.

SEE ALSO: Ex-DA weighs in on Gwinnett County's 3rd attempt to convict father in child cruelty trial

Image 1 of 5
▼

A makeshift memorial has been set up outside the home on Vine Springs Trace in Gwinnett County, where Sayra Barros, 8, allegedly suffered a fatal beating on Jan. 30. (FOX 5)

Emory Law Professor Kay Levine told FOX 5 that, while there's no limit to the number of times prosecutors can head back to court when there's a mistrial, this third time they need to rethink their strategy to avoid the same result.

"It's not uncommon to have two, but a prosecutor's office really needs to have, like, a sit down with the trial team, the leaders of the office and the trial team, to figure out what is going to happen in the third go-round that would lead us to think we're going to real a different outcome than we got in round one and round two. So, three really is at the upper limits," she explained.

Natalia faces felony murder and child cruelty charges in her stepdaughter's death. It is unclear when her trial will start.