Juror shortage delays Juilliard-trained pianist’s SC murder trial. What now?

The Circuit Court in Greenville County has stepped up actions to get people to show up for jury duty after a shortage disrupted court, including a high profile murder trial of a Juilliard-trained musician accused of killing a young mother in 2021.

The clerk of court sent summonses to 161 people for jury duty the week of Jan. 13 and 59 showed up.

The lack of jurors “created challenges across the docket,” Clerk Jay Gresham said.

“You can’t build a house without a solid foundation, and jurors are just that for our justice system,” Gresham said in a news release. “When jurors don’t show, justice comes to a screeching halt, and that’s not acceptable. That’s why we’re taking immediate action to fix this issue.”

Chief Administrative Judge for General Sessions G. D. Morgan Jr. issued an order for 100 additional jurors for the Feb. 10 trial term mailed in official envelopes bearing the Greenville County seal to show they are authentic.

The trial of pianist Zachary Hughes was to begin last week but was postponed until February because the court did not have enough qualified jurors.

Hughes is charged with the murder of Christina Parcell, a 41-year-old vet tech, who was stabbed on Oct. 13, 2021 in her home in the Canebrake neighborhood in Greer.

Sheriff Hobart Lewis called the scene brutal and violent. Parcell was stabbed multiple times.

Parcell has a young daughter who is in the care of her grandparents.

Hughes graduated from The Juilliard School and performed throughout the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Japan, according to his online biography. He lived as a child in California and Virginia but was living in downtown Greenville at the time of the murder.

He has been in the Greenville County Jail since he was arrested shortly after Purcell’s murder.

Besides murder, he is charged with possession of a weapon during a violent crime and two counts of harassment stemming from calls he allegedly made to Purcell.

John Mello, who is the father of Purcell’s child, is also charged with harassment and is awaiting trial. Mello and Purcell had been involved in a custody dispute, according to court records.

Greenville County Sheriff’s officers said Hughes sent nude photos of Purcell to numerous people and businesses. Prosecutors accessed Hughes’ cell home and found a message from Mello saying to “harass the (expletive) out of her.”

The Greenville County Clerk’s Office said it will address the jury shortage through a public awareness campaign with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office.

Under South Carolina law, failing to respond to a jury summons can result in the individual being brought before a judge for account for their absence.

“Answering the call to jury duty is not just a legal responsibility — it’s an act of service to your fellow citizens and a commitment to the ideals that unite us as proud Americans,” Gresham said.