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Jury selected in Creato murder trial, opening arguments to begin Thursday

Prosecutors say Haddon Township father D.J. Creato killed his 3-year-old son, Brendan, to stop his girlfriend from leaving him.

David "DJ" Creato Jr. enters courtroom of Judge John T. Kelley at the Camden County Superior Court on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 for the start of his trial. He is accused of killing his son Brendan in 2015.
David "DJ" Creato Jr. enters courtroom of Judge John T. Kelley at the Camden County Superior Court on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 for the start of his trial. He is accused of killing his son Brendan in 2015.Read moreDAVID SWANSON / Staff Photographer

A jury was selected Wednesday in the case of a Haddon Township father charged with killing his 3-year-old son, and opening arguments will begin Thursday.

The agreement on a jury came after about a day and a half of selection for the murder trial.

Prosecutors say David "D.J." Creato Jr., 23, killed his son, Brendan, to stop his girlfriend from leaving him. A police dog found Brendan's pajama-clad body slumped over a rock in woods near the Cooper River, about three-quarters of a mile from Creato's apartment, on Oct. 13, 2015.

Creato was arrested three months later.

Assistant Camden County Prosecutor Christine Shah has said Brendan died of "homicidal violence" and that an examination of his brain showed an abnormality consistent with oxygen deprivation that can be caused by asphyxiation, drowning, or strangulation.

An exact cause of death was never determined, despite a review of the case by three doctors, including state Medical Examiner Andrew L. Falzon.

Thursday's hearing begins at 9 a.m. in Superior Court in Camden. The trial is expected to last through May.