Robert Bowers Trial category, Page 4
Opening statements begin in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial
It has taken four years and seven months, but the man accused of killing 11 people as they gathered to practice their Jewish faith at a Squirrel Hill synagogue is going to trial. Opening statements in the case against Robert Bowers, 50, of Baldwin began Tuesday morning in a relatively...
Biden releases new strategy to tackle rise in antisemitism, says ‘hate will not prevail’
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday announced what he said is the most ambitious and comprehensive undertaking by the U.S. government to fight hate, bias and violence against Jews, outlining more than 100 steps the administration and its partners can take to combat an alarming rise in antisemitism. Speaking...
Jury set for Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial
The people who will determine if Robert Bowers lives or dies include a Catholic and a Protestant, an ICU nurse, a real estate manager, a paralegal, a postal worker, a parole board employee, an event manager and a brand-new father. They are among the 11 women and seven men who...
Jury pool for Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial is set
The panel of prospective jurors who will hear the case against a man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue is set. After 17 days of questioning over four weeks, 69 people have moved into the pool from which 12 jurors and six alternates will be selected...
Jewish community steels itself for Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial
If they couldn’t erase the deeds, some chose to erase the alleged perpetrator. “For the past 4 1⁄2 years there’s been an effort to not speak the name of the defendant, to not look at photos of the defendant,” Jordan Golin, president and CEO of Jewish Family and Community Services,...
Judge allows prosecution to conduct psychiatric evaluation of accused Pittsburgh synagogue shooter
The judge presiding over the trial of the man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue has granted the government’s motion to conduct a psychiatric evaluation of the defendant. U.S. District Judge Robert Colville issued a 23-page opinion Monday giving government experts permission to evaluate Robert Bowers,...
Jury selection is crucial and complex in death penalty cases, experts say
Jury selection might be a misnomer. In the case of the man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue in 2018, experts say, the process might more aptly be called “jury deselection” or “jury rejection.” Picking the right jury in a capital case is more about taking...
Judge denies motion to prohibit death penalty in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting case
The federal judge presiding over the trial of the man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue denied a motion by the defense requesting to stop the government from seeking the death penalty against their client. Defense attorneys for Robert Bowers, 50, of Baldwin, accused the U.S....
Amid Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial, Jewish community and others work to show city as inclusive place of refuge
Over the next several months, as the trial unfolds in connection with the Squirrel Hill synagogue shooting, Pittsburgh will be repeatedly reminded that it is home to the worst antisemitic attack in U.S. history. Eleven people from three congregations — Tree of Life-Or L’Simcha, Dor Hadash and New Light —...
After week of selection, 27 people eligible for jury in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial
Questions about feelings on the death penalty continued to dominate the process on the fifth day of jury selection in the case against a man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue in 2018. Through Friday, the government and defense have interviewed 81 prospective jurors, and, of...
Jury selection continues in Pittsburgh synagogue attack trial
One of the prospective jurors questioned Wednesday in the third day of jury selection for the trial of accused Tree of Life synagogue shooter Robert Bowers said he knew the two brothers killed in the Oct. 27, 2018, shooting. The man, a pet store manager, previously worked for a company...
Potential jurors asked about death penalty as selection continues in Robert Bowers trial
Attorneys in the case of the man accused of killing 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue questioned an additional 19 prospective jurors on Tuesday on the second day of the selection process. That brings the total number of people questioned thus far for jury selection to 35. It remains unclear...
15 possible jurors questioned in 1st day of Robert Bowers synagogue shooting trial
Fifteen prospective jurors were questioned on Monday on the first day of jury selection in the case against the man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue in 2018. It is unclear how many, if any, will be seated on the panel. Robert Bowers, 50, is charged...
Tree of Life trial: Key players for prosecution, defense in Robert Bowers case
Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday for the trial of Robert Bowers, the man accused of killing 11 people Oct. 27, 2018, at the Tree of Life synagogue on Wilkins Avenue in Squirrel Hill. Two additional congregants were shot and wounded during worship services that day, and five police...
Until we meet again: Ceremony marks start of new chapter at Tree of Life synagogue
In the garden outside the Tree of Life synagogue, surrounded by budding plants and green bushes, congregation members and neighbors gathered to say “until we see each other again” to the Squirrel Hill building that once served as a center of worship for many in the Jewish community. The synagogue...
In mass shooting cases, stakes and emotions are high for prosecution and defense
William Difenderfer still remembers the day. It was a Friday. April 28, 2000. A Mt. Lebanon man went on a killing spree, fatally shooting five people from Western Pennsylvania because of their race and religion. Difenderfer, a well-known criminal defense attorney, lived in Mt. Lebanon. His children attended schools there....
Robert Bowers trial: What you need to know about Tree of Life synagogue shooting case
Jury selection begins Monday in the capital case against the man accused in the 2018 mass shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue building in Squirrel Hill. Robert Bowers, 50, of Baldwin, could face the death penalty if convicted in the federal case. The process of choosing 12 jurors and...
Majority of victims’ families in Tree of Life shooting case want death penalty
The sisters of two of the men killed in the mass shooting at a Squirrel Hill synagogue in 2018 said on Friday that they believe the man responsible should be put to death. Diane and Michele Rosenthal hosted a brief video meeting with members of the media to correct what...
Defense attorneys in synagogue mass shooting again ask to have death penalty option thrown out
Defense attorneys for the man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue said Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Justice is arbitrarily seeking the death penalty against their client but failed to do the same in other attempted mass shooting cases in which Jewish and Latino people...
Defense: Tree of Life suspect has schizophrenia, epilepsy
The man accused of killing 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue in 2018 has schizophrenia and epilepsy, his defense attorneys said in a court filing late Monday. The revelation, contained in a response opposing the government’s request to do a psychiatric and neuropsychological evaluation on Robert Bowers, came...
Feds want Tree of Life suspect psychiatric examination
Federal prosecutors have asked the judge presiding over the Tree of Life mass shooting case to give their experts permission to examine the defendant for mental illness. In a seven-page motion filed Friday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office asks for a psychiatrist, a neuropsychologist and neurologist to be given access to...
