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Russell Yates has court date of his own - and misses it
By MARY FLOOD
Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle

The one day Russell Yates was legally obliged to be in the Harris County Courthouse complex, he wasn't. He skipped jury duty Monday.

The husband of Andrea Pia Yates, sentenced to life in prison for capital murder in the drowning of her five children, was in New York City to appear on the Today Show in the morning. He flew cross-country to do Larry King Live in the evening.

In doing so, Yates missed his wife's formal sentencing Monday morning and his 12:15 p.m. jury call.

"We saw him all over TV the last day or so, so we know he's preoccupied," said Harris County District Clerk Charles Bacarisse, whose office oversees the jury selection process.

"Sadly, a lot of citizens in our county miss jury duty. It's always unfortunate, but in this case it's unfortunate and ironic. It's completely bizarre."

Yates, contacted in Los Angeles as he prepared for the King show, said he remembered seeing a jury summons but it slipped his mind.

"I've got piles of papers at home," he said. "I'm lucky I have the electricity on, I've been so busy."

Until Monday, he had been a courthouse regular for months. His wife's trial began in full Feb. 18, after weeks of jury selection.

There can be penalties for skipping jury duty. But the county seldom hunts people down. Bacarisse said Yates, like any citizen who misses jury duty, can call the county and get a date reset. Yates asked the Chronicle for Bacarisse's phone number Monday.

"What's more bizarre is that about three months ago, I got a jury summons for Andrea, too," Yates said.

Bacarisse said they figured out why Andrea Yates, incarcerated since her arrest in June, hadn't made it to the jury room.

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