Steinberg Trial Is Told Evidence May Be Painful

Steinberg Trial Is Told Evidence May Be Painful

By RONALD SULLIVAN

LEAD: The prosecution in the trial of Joel B. Steinberg said yesterday that its evidence would be gruesome and that ''there are no eyewitnesses'' to the crime.

The prosecution in the trial of Joel B. Steinberg said yesterday that its evidence would be gruesome and that ''there are no eyewitnesses'' to the crime.

The evidence ''may be very graphic, very painful, and very unpleasant and often difficult to deal with,'' the prosecutor, Peter Casolaro, told about a hundred potential jurors in State Supreme Court in Manhattan.

The evidence in the slaying of 6-year-old Lisa Steinberg, he said, could lead them ''to some pretty horrible conclusions.''

At that, Ira D. London, Mr. Steinberg's lawyer, jumped to his feet and objected to the language ''horrible conclusions.'' Acting Justice Harold J. Rothwax, directed Mr. Casolaro to rephrase his statement. Circumstantial Case Hinted

''Do you have the courage,'' Mr. Casolaro then asked the prospective jurors, ''to follow the credible evidence no matter where it takes you?''

''Would you hold it against us if we present only a circumstantial case?'' he asked, adding that ''some people think 'circumstantial evidence' is a dirty word.''

None of the 16 people interviewed said they would hold it against the prosecution.

The screening of potential jurors began yesterday, and by the end of the day, two were chosen.

The jury selection is expected to continue for several weeks. Mr. Steinberg and Hedda Nussbaum are charged with second-degree murder in the death of Lisa, whom they were raising. The trial is expected to last two or three months. Strong Emotions Evident

Some questioning of prospective jurors yesterday showed, as several experts in criminal law predicted, that it might be difficult to find impartial jurors in the highly publicized case.

When it was Mr. London's turn to interview, he faced a woman and pointed his finger at Mr. Steinberg, who was quietly taking notes beside him.

''What feelings to you have about Joel Steinberg when you look at him?'' the defense attorney asked. ''Horror, horror,'' she replied. With that, Justice Rothwax called aside the lawyers from both sides, and the woman was excused.

Mr. Casolaro asked the prospective jurors, ''If you learned that Hedda Nussbaum had been charged originally in the case and she made an agreement to testify, would you hold that against the prosecution?''

In responding individually, none of the jurors said they would. Curiosity Issue Raised

''Could you set aside your curiosity if she doesn't testify?'' he inquired further, adding, ''If you are overwhelmed by your curiosity, would you tell us about it?''

Mr. Casolaro told the prospective jurors that Ms. Nussbaum ''may or may not'' be a prosecution witness. He said she still had ''some emotional problems'' from the beatings that prosecutors say she received from Mr. Steinberg and that she was being treated in a private psychiatric center.

Prosecutors say Lisa was killed by a blow to the head in the couple's Greenwich Village apartment on Nov. 2, 1987.

Mr. Steinberg, a 47-year-old disbarred lawyer, told the police, who took Lisa to St. Vincent's Medical Center, that she had had a bad reaction to vegetables she had eaten and that he and Ms. Nussbaum had spent the night trying to revive her before calling the city's 911 emergency telephone number to get an ambulance.

However, physicians who treated Lisa at St. Vincent's told the police that she had suffered a sharp blow to the head and that she was brain dead when she arrived at the emergency room.

According to law-enforcement officials, a major piece of evidence is a blood-stained exercise bar found in the Steinberg apartment.