An Edgewood man’s murder trial this week has brought tight security amid concerns about a packed courtroom, reluctant witnesses and outbursts from distraught family members.

Jury selection began Monday in the trial of Sean Nelson Smith, 28, who is charged with fatally shooting Samuel Horne on Aug. 11.

Sheriff’s deputies charged with court security said during pretrial motions last month that they were concerned about risks involved in holding the trial in Judge Stephen Waldron’s oversized, ceremonial courtroom, which has a large gallery with rows of wooden benches. Most of the Circuit Court’s more modern courtrooms have only three rows of seats for family members and spectators.

“It’s just a large courtroom; you can have a larger audience, there’s more room for the defendant to be moved around in, and there are two exits to watch instead of one,” said Lt. James Eyler, commander of the Sheriff’s Office Court Services Division. “Any time you have a trial like this, you’ll sometimes have people on both sides who might get very emotional.”

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During pretrial motions in December, Assistant State’s Attorney H. Scott Lewis requested a witness be taken into custody and held until he testifies. The witness had already acted hostile toward prosecutors, tearing up a summons and throwing it at the deputy and assistant state’s attorney delivering it, Lewis said.

Court security personnel have met with bureau commander Maj. Steve Bodway to come up with a tighter security plan for high-profile cases, said Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Sgt. Christina Presberry. The plan also included measures to deal with witness intimidation in the courtroom, if necessary.

“If that happens and if we’re made aware of it, we can handle that,” Presberry said.

Eyler said that security at Smith’s trial would be no more of a concern than it would be at other high-profile murder cases.

msantoni@baltimoreexaminer.com