Sowell’s attorneys, John Parker and Rufus Sims, objected to the motion during a hearing Friday afternoon, contending that the house is a crime scene on private property that has never been open to the public.

The final jurors have been chosen for the case of Anthony Sowell who is accused of killing 11 women and keeping their bodies in and around his Cleveland home.

Eight women and four men have been sworn in by Judge Dick Ambrose for the Sowell case.

The jurors include a college student, a registered nurse, a social worker, a retired art teacher and a teacher's aide.

There will be four alternate jurors in this case as opposed to the usual two jurors generally assigned.

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Dick Ambrose granted journalists permission Friday to join the newly-selected jury panel on a tour of the house before opening statements in Sowell’s trial begin Monday afternoon.

A print reporter, a still photographer and a videographer will tag along with 12 jurors and four alternates, who will be broken into smaller groups to walk through the East Side duplex and take note of significant details that will be pointed out by a court official.

The judge issued his order allowing the media’s presence after an attorney representing The Plain Dealer and Scripps Media, Inc., which owns WEWS Channel 5, argued that the jury’s tour of the house is a judicial proceeding that the public has the right to observe.

Sowell’s attorneys, John Parker and Rufus Sims, objected to the motion during a hearing Friday afternoon, contending that the house is a crime scene on private property that has never been open to the public.

Parker said the media’s presence could intimidate jurors and open the case to a mistrial.

But Ambrose disagreed and said there are “1,000 things that could cause a mistrial,” but anticipating each one is impractical and could lead to trampling the rights of the media and the public.

Sowell, 51, is charged with multiple counts of aggravated murder, kidnapping, abusing a corpse and tampering with evidence in the deaths of the 11 women.

He faces the death penalty if convicted, and his trial is expected to take months, with as many as 132 witnesses testifying.

After three weeks of combing through lengthy jury questionnaires and interviewing nearly 200 prospective jurors both privately and in a larger group, attorneys settled upon eight women and four men who will decide Sowell’s fate.

Two women and two men will serve as alternates.

Only one black man -- a Nigerian immigrant -- made the panel. Four of the jurors and two of the alternates are black women.

The attorneys during the past three days asked the jury pool questions trying to gage their understanding of the state’s burden of proof, innocence until guilt is proven and Sowell’s right not to testify in his own defense.

Jurors also answered questions related to their exposure to people with mental health or drug abuse problems. Nearly all of the jurors said they have experience with one or both.