Eight said they could, while four said they could not. Three of those four knew Underwood personally, which would make them unavailable for the jury anyway, Mashburn said. The fourth worked for the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System.

Mashburn said this showed there could be an impartial jury in McClain County.

Lyman responded by saying the issue was the overall picture.

"The weight of the evidence shows that this community, this good community, is predisposed," he said.

The judge agreed.

"The court has to assure that in this important case the defendant's due process rights are protected," Blalock said.

She said she was persuaded the venue should be changed because a reasonable amount of prejudice was shown to exist.

"This community has been particularly hard hit and intensely invested in the circumstances surrounding this case," she said. "Empaneling a truly impartial jury in this county would be highly unlikely."

Blalock said Cleveland County will be the location of the trial.

Mashburn, who operates in McClain, Cleveland and Garvin counties, said the change of venue will not affect his case greatly.

"It's not going to create a hardship," he said.

By his own request, Underwood will remain in the McClain County jail.

The trial was pushed back from June to August.

The preliminary juror report date will be Aug. 2, the final pretrial conference will be Aug. 9, and the trial will commence Aug. 14.

Julianna Parker 366-3550 jparker@normantranscript.com