Jury Screening Begins for Former Piedmont Resident's Serial Murder Trial

Jury screening for the trial of Joseph Naso, 89, a former Piedmont resident charged with the murders of four women, got under way in Marin County Superior Court Monday, according to an article in the Marin Independent Journal. 

Actual selection of a jury is expected to begin on June 3, with opening statements and witness testimony likely to start in md-June and continue through mid-November, the article said. The trial will have breaks each Thursday and on July 5 and 15-26.

Naso, who faces the death penalty, is acting as his own attorney in the trial, with advice from his legal counsel, Deputy Public Defender Pedro Oliveros, the Marin IJ said. Naso, Oliveros and proscutors will all review juror questionnaires before jury selection starts. Marin County has issued nearly 15,000 jury summons for the trial, according to news reports.

Naso is charged with the murder of Roxene Roggasch in January 1977; Carmen Colon, 22, in Contra Costa County in August 1978; Pamela Parsons, 38, in Contra Costa County on Sept. 19, 1993; and Tracy Tafoya, 31, in August 1994 in Yuba County. The victims were found along roadsides in the three counties.

The Marin County District Attorney's Office is alleging that Naso, a self-employed photographer who took photos of scantily-clothed women who appeared dead, asleep or unconscious, strangled the four women who worked as prostitutes.

Authorities continue to investigate whether Naso may be tied to other murders in various parts of California.

Naso lived in Piedmont during the late 1970s and early 1980s, according to local residents who attended Piedmont schools with his sons.

You may read the complete Marin Independent Journal article here.