CHESAPEAKE, Va., Nov. 10 (UPI) -- At his capital murder trial in Chesapeake, Va., Lee Malvo, the second of the D.C. sniper suspects pleaded not guilty Monday as proceedings got under way.
The opening of his trial overlaps with co-suspect John Muhammad, 48, already under way 15 miles away in Virginia Beach.
Both defendants are charged under a recent Virginia terrorism law, which allows the death penalty for acts meant to intimidate the civilian population at large.
The trial of Malvo, 18, opened with a motion from his lawyers, denied by the judge, for the charge under the terrorism law to be dropped, the New York Times reported.
Malvo's lawyers said they will argue he is not guilty by reason of insanity, saying he was under the influence of the older man.
Court officials said Judge Jane Marum Roush requested 125 to 150 potential jurors for Malvo's trial, from which attorneys will select 12 jurors and four alternates. The trial is expected to last three to six weeks, during which a verdict is expected in Muhammad's case.
The trial was moved to Chesapeake on a change of venue.
