Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 9, 2006 9:52:20 GMT -5
Nichols wants cameras, death penalty option barred from trial
The Associated Press - ATLANTA
Defense lawyers for accused courthouse gunman Brian Nichols filed a flurry of motions late Friday asking a judge, among other things, to bar cameras from broadcasting the defendant's murder trial and to prevent the state from executing him if he is convicted.
Some 20 motions were filed almost simultaneously by Nichols' lawyers in anticipation of the trial, which is scheduled for Jan. 11 in the same courthouse complex where the March 11, 2005, shooting spree began. A judge and three others were killed. There were no immediate rulings on the motions.
In the motion regarding cameras in the courtroom, Nichols' lawyers argued that their client would be prevented from getting a fair trial by having the proceedings broadcast on television.
The motion, if approved, would seem to also bar still cameras, because it asks that the only camera that be allowed is one that would provide a closed-circuit feed to another room where reporters could watch.
"The defense has already encountered witnesses who have expressed reluctance to be interviewed and/or to testify in court because of the ongoing media coverage in this case," the defense argued in the motion. "Only if such witnesses can be ensured that this trial, and their potential testimony, will not be televised and broadcast for all the world to watch (and dissect) will the defense be able to provide effective representation and the defendant be provided a fair trial."
Television and still cameras have been allowed in pretrial hearings thus far in the case.
In the motion to bar the state from imposing the death penalty in the case, the defense argues that the state administers the death penalty in an arbitrary way and thus it is unconstitutional.
"Because the right to life is a fundamental right which must be subject to at least the same constitutional protections as the right to vote, the state must establish safeguards to ensure that it does not treat its citizens in a disparate and arbitrary manner with respect to their lives," the motion says.
The defense filed a separate motion challenging the state's use of lethal injection as its form of capital punishment. The lawyers argue that the method of execution in Georgia amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.
Another motion seeks to force prosecutors to disclose to defense lawyers any all statements that they believe Nichols has made to not only police and other investigators, but also to fellow inmates at the county jail where he is being held.
Nichols is charged in a 54-count indictment with murder, kidnapping, carjacking, escape and other offenses. He has pleaded not guilty.
He is accused of grabbing a deputy's gun and killing a judge, court reporter, a sheriff's deputy and a federal agent he encountered at a home a few miles from the courthouse.
Police said Nichols also took a woman hostage in her suburban Atlanta apartment but surrendered the next day.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press.
The Associated Press - ATLANTA
Defense lawyers for accused courthouse gunman Brian Nichols filed a flurry of motions late Friday asking a judge, among other things, to bar cameras from broadcasting the defendant's murder trial and to prevent the state from executing him if he is convicted.
Some 20 motions were filed almost simultaneously by Nichols' lawyers in anticipation of the trial, which is scheduled for Jan. 11 in the same courthouse complex where the March 11, 2005, shooting spree began. A judge and three others were killed. There were no immediate rulings on the motions.
In the motion regarding cameras in the courtroom, Nichols' lawyers argued that their client would be prevented from getting a fair trial by having the proceedings broadcast on television.
The motion, if approved, would seem to also bar still cameras, because it asks that the only camera that be allowed is one that would provide a closed-circuit feed to another room where reporters could watch.
"The defense has already encountered witnesses who have expressed reluctance to be interviewed and/or to testify in court because of the ongoing media coverage in this case," the defense argued in the motion. "Only if such witnesses can be ensured that this trial, and their potential testimony, will not be televised and broadcast for all the world to watch (and dissect) will the defense be able to provide effective representation and the defendant be provided a fair trial."
Television and still cameras have been allowed in pretrial hearings thus far in the case.
In the motion to bar the state from imposing the death penalty in the case, the defense argues that the state administers the death penalty in an arbitrary way and thus it is unconstitutional.
"Because the right to life is a fundamental right which must be subject to at least the same constitutional protections as the right to vote, the state must establish safeguards to ensure that it does not treat its citizens in a disparate and arbitrary manner with respect to their lives," the motion says.
The defense filed a separate motion challenging the state's use of lethal injection as its form of capital punishment. The lawyers argue that the method of execution in Georgia amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.
Another motion seeks to force prosecutors to disclose to defense lawyers any all statements that they believe Nichols has made to not only police and other investigators, but also to fellow inmates at the county jail where he is being held.
Nichols is charged in a 54-count indictment with murder, kidnapping, carjacking, escape and other offenses. He has pleaded not guilty.
He is accused of grabbing a deputy's gun and killing a judge, court reporter, a sheriff's deputy and a federal agent he encountered at a home a few miles from the courthouse.
Police said Nichols also took a woman hostage in her suburban Atlanta apartment but surrendered the next day.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press.