BOSTON — Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev returned to court Thursday for the first time since he was arraigned in July 2013.
Security was tight at the federal courthouse in Boston for the final pretrial conference before his trial begins next month.
Tsarnaev, 21, was led into the courtroom by U.S. marshals. He was wearing a black sweater and gray trousers, and had a scruffy beard and a mop top hairstyle similar to the one seen in his mug shot. He smiled to his attorneys, and one patted him on the arm.
The courtroom was packed with FBI agents, police who worked on the case and more than a dozen survivors and family members.
Three people were killed and more than 260 were injured when two bombs exploded near the finish line of the April 2013 marathon. Tsarnaev, who has pleaded innocent to 30 federal charges, faces the possibility of the death penalty if he is convicted.
Read Friday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.