NORTHAMPTON — Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial for a former Northeast Center for Youth and Families employee accused of raping a teenager.
Seven jurors were seated, with seven more needed, and selection will continue Wednesday, court staff said.
Alphonso Cintron, 34, has pleaded innocent to charges of rape and abuse of a child as well as child abuse. He allegedly raped in 2009 a female teenager who was staying at the residential treatment facility where Cintron was an overnight staffer, according to the Northwestern district attorney’s office.
At the time, the teen, who was younger than 16, was under Cintron’s supervision in the program.
Cintron is also accused of failing to alert authorities when he discovered the same teen was being sexually abused by another staff member at the center, according to the district attorney’s office.
About four dozen potential jurors were in Hampshire Superior Court to be screened and questioned by attorneys, court staff said. The trial itself is expected to last four to six days.
Assistant Northwestern District Attorney Caleb Weiner is prosecuting the case, and Tracy E. Duncan, of Springfield, is defending Cintron.
Follow reporter Michael Majchrowicz on Twitter for trial updates @mjmajchrowicz.