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Man accused of abducting, killing Sierah Joughin appears in court

James Worley, of Delta, is facing the death penalty for the abduction and death of 20-year-old Sierah Joughin in 2016.
Credit: Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio (CCNO))
James Dean Worley (Source: Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio (CCNO))
Sierah Joughin (Source: Fulton County Sheriff's Office)

WAUSEON, OH (WTOL) - The man accused of kidnapping and killing University of Toledo Student Sierah Joughin appeared in court on Monday for another pretrial hearing.

James Worley, of Delta, is facing the death penalty for the abduction and death of 20-year-old Joughin in 2016. This most recent court appearance served as a way to tie up loose ends before the trial begins on January 16.

Worley entered the courtroom Monday in plain clothes with no handcuffs. He was seen asking his attorney questions throughout the hearing, where jury selection was discussed.

About 250 potential jurors are currently part of the jury pool. So far, 208 of those have filled out a lengthy jury questionnaire that attorneys will go through before jury selection begins in January.

The selection is expected to last about a week.

Several outstanding motions were also discussed at the hearing, such as the locations of cell phone towers used to gather data from Sierah and Worley's phones.

One final pretrial hearing is scheduled for January to make sure everything is read for the trial.  The trial is expected to last up to a month.

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