Trial in Girl’s Death Will Stay in O.C.

The trial for the man accused of kidnapping and killing 5-year-old Samantha Runnion will remain in Orange County, a judge ruled Thursday.

Jury selection for the trial of Alejandro Avila, 29, will start Thursday in Superior Court Judge William Froeberg’s Santa Ana courtroom. The trial is expected to start at the end of March and last three to four months.

In asking for the trial to be moved, defense attorneys argued that media coverage of the case had biased too many Orange County residents for an open-minded jury to be seated.

However, Froeberg agreed with prosecutors who said that so much time had passed since the July 2002 killing that people’s memories about the case had faded.

“I’d be very surprised if even half of [the prospective jurors] have heard about this case,” he said.

Samantha was taken from outside her Stanton condominium complex that July 15. Her strangled body was found the next day off Ortega Highway a few miles from Avila’s Lake Elsinore apartment.

Police have said DNA evidence ties him to the slaying.

Avila could face the death penalty if he is convicted.

Times wire services contributed to this report.