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A little more than a month ago, Portland attorney Jeremy Vermilyea and his daughter witnessed the unimaginable 鈥� a double murder at the home across the street from theirs. June 4 was a day that has forever changed Vermilyea鈥檚 life on a personal level and, as he testified before a grand jury about the incident, he was impacted professionally as well.

During his testimony, Vermilyea shared how he watched Adrien Wallace, 41, shoot his mother, Sandra Sue Wallace, and his 14-year-old nephew, Nick Juarez, in the driveway of his mother鈥檚 Lake Oswego home. Wallace has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder and could face the death penalty if convicted.

Vermilyea testified before the grand jury just four days after the shooting, compounding the surreal experience he found himself facing. 鈥淚 was probably still in a state of shock,鈥� he said. 鈥淭ruthfully, it was really only around the fourth of July that I started feeling normal and was able to focus again.鈥�

He credits the Clackamas County detectives investigating the case for their sensitivity to what the Vermilyeas had witnessed, noting the detectives provided referrals to trauma counselors and victim assistance resources while interviewing Vermilyea and his daughter after the shooting.

Vermilyea admits it was a delicate balance to stay composed and deal with his emotions while describing the tragic details that helped law enforcement officers and the district attorney鈥檚 office build their case. While it鈥檚 tempting to want to forget that day, Vermilyea knows he may be called upon to relive it if the case goes to trial.

鈥淭here is really no way to get something like that out of my mind, and it replays in my mind regularly,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou certainly don鈥檛 expect to see something like that, and certainly not across from your house.鈥�

Vermilyea, who practices construction law, commercial litigation, and real estate and environmental law with Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, said he was surprised by how informal the grand jury experience was. He had clerked for a criminal court in Alaska and learned some details about the grand jury process from his wife, Kristin, a Schwabe paralegal who had previously chaired a Washington County grand jury. Beyond that, though, he wasn鈥檛 sure what to expect.

鈥淚 was so impressed by how seriously the people on the grand jury were taking the case,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s a lawyer, that gives me great comfort because people often joke about how to get out of jury service. The people who end up serving on juries do take it seriously and they do their best to do a good job.鈥�