Jury selection expected in Paddock trial

SMITHFIELD Defense attorneys argued Paddock had offered incriminating statements before she was read her Miranda rights during an interview with Johnston County Sheriff detectives in February of 2006 after Sean had suffocated inside the Paddock home. Judge Knox Jenkins said Lynn Paddock made the statements freely without responding to questions from Sheriff detectives.

Sheriff detectives said Paddock had admitted she wrapped 4-year-old Sean tightly in blankets to keep him from moving and to make him sleep. Detectives said they tried to show Paddock a picture of Sean's dead body which included bruises to his body. They said she refused to view the photo and said, "That's not my son." Sean was also found to have a collapsed lung and a ruptured stomach.

Lynn Paddock is charged with first degree murder. In a pre-trial hearing, Paddock's former adopted children told of regular beatings and sadistic punishment inside the Paddock home. The children, now adults, told of Paddock forcing kids to urinate on themselves, eat their own vomit and feces. One described Lynn Paddock violently beating 4-year-old Sean just days before he died.

Jury selection for the murder trial is expected to begin today. Lynn Paddock could face a lifetime prison sentence if convicted of first degree murder.