Judge Heidi Ulbricht has denied defense requests to move a murder trial for an Evergreen man accused of killing a toddler earlier this year.

Attorneys for Brandon Lee Walter Newberry, 21, had asked that the trial be moved out of Flathead County because they alleged extensive media coverage may have tainted the jury pool.

Newberry’s attorneys said he had to be fitted with a bulletproof vest at his previous court proceedings and that his vehicle had been vandalized shortly after he was jailed for the alleged crime.

Ulbricht disagreed that the trial should be moved.

“The mere existence of people among those summoned for jury duty who have read about the case or are biased against a defendant does not automatically mean that an impartial jury cannot be impaneled,” Ulbricht wrote.

“Alternatives exist to counter bias and potential jurors’ awareness of the case that do not infringe on the freedom of the press and the public’s right to know, including drawing a larger-than-average panel of potential jurors and extending voir dire.”

Voir dire is the process of screening jurors before a trial.

Ulbricht noted that other high-profile cases have been held in Flathead County without moving the trial, including the Justine Winter case, which attracted national media attention for the case of the teenage girl who intentionally crashed her car and killed two people.

Ulbricht also upheld the media’s rights to cover developments in the case, saying that certain sensitive documents might have to be redacted but the majority of the material would be available to the public.

The trial is currently scheduled for March.

Newberry, who remains in the Flathead County Detention Center, faces up to 100 years in prison if convicted. Newberry was charged with deliberate homicide after the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office received a call about on unresponsive child on Feb. 17.

According to court documents, Newberry was heard screaming, “It’s my fault, it’s my fault” during the call.

Deputies found 2-year-old Forrest Groshelle with bruising, scratching and abrasions on his body. An autopsy concluded that Groshelle was hit in the abdomen, which caused a fatal laceration of the small intestine.

The child’s mother told deputies that she had left Groshelle with Newberry during the day while she worked. Newberry admitted to investigators that he had been “roughhousing” with Groshelle a day prior to the child’s death.

Reporter Megan Strickland can be reached at 758-4459 or [email protected].