Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Pleads Not Guilty
Alleged Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev officially plead not guilty to using a weapon of mass destruction and the 29 other counts during a short, pre-trial hearing on Wednesday.
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Tsarnaev entered the courtroom in a prison jumpsuit, hair long, with shackles around his feet, shortly after 3:30 p.m. with a cast on his left wrist while members of his family were present in the courtroom, wiping tears from her eyes. WFXT's Sharman Sachetti reported his sisters showed up, baby in tow, for the pre-trial hearing. The trial will last about three to four months, and the prosecution expects between 80-100 witnesses to take the stand.
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There was a huge police presence outside the courthouse on Wednesday:
MIT police line up outside federal court #wcvb pic.twitter.com/QfkQ80e182
— Kelley Tuthill (@wcvbkelleyt) July 10, 2013
Tsarnaev's fans (yes, they exist) showed up early with T-shirts and signs and Guy Falkes masks to demonstrate outside of the courtroom. Some were chanting "justice for Dzhokhar" and "give him his freedom back," as the motorcade carrying Tsarnaev approached the courthouse. The New York Times' Jess Bidgood reported about 3 dozen were allowed into the packed courtroom.
