The man accused of killing 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue in 2018 appeared in a federal courtroom Monday morning for the first time in more than four years.
Robert Bowers, 50, of Baldwin, was present in the eighth-floor courtroom of U.S. District Judge Robert Colville for the first session of the first phase of jury selection.
The court has mailed 1,500 summonses to prospective jurors from a 24-county area of Western Pennsylvania. Under federal court rules, 12 jurors and up to six alternate jurors will be selected.
Groups of prospective jurors are scheduled to appear twice a day at the federal courthouse on Grant Street over the next two weeks. Each group will include about 75 prospective jurors. The first group gathered Monday morning to receive instructions on how to complete the extensive questionnaire that ultimately will be used to select the jurors who will hear the case.
Jury selection, which is expected to last several weeks, will officially begin with in-person questioning on April 24, Colville said. The trial is expected to begin in mid-to-late May and will last about two months.
Bowers, dressed in a dark sweater and white dress shirt, sat in the middle of a team of four defense attorneys and stood to face the prospective jurors when asked.
No one, other than Colville, addressed those gathered during the 17-minute session.
The judge began the session by talking about the importance of jury selection and describing the charges Bowers faces.
He is charged with dozens of counts, including committing hate crimes resulting in death and obstruction of religion resulting in death, stemming from the Oct. 27, 2018, mass shooting at the Squirrel Hill synagogue.
“Eleven worshippers were killed and others were shot and injured,” Colville said, including police officers who responded to the attack. “The government is seeking the death penalty as punishment if Robert Bowers is convicted in this case.”
Colville briefly described potential sentences in the case, telling the jury that if Bowers is convicted, he could either serve a sentence of life in prison — there is no parole in the federal system — or be sentenced to death.
“Each juror must ultimately make an individual judgment,” Colville said.
The group of prospective jurors, after receiving the court’s instruction, moved to another room in the building to complete the questionnaire.
“Please do not discuss the questions or your answers,” Colville told them. “There are not right or wrong answers. All jurors have had different life experiences that inform their thoughts and views.
“The integrity of the process depends on your truthfulness.”
Colville instructed the prospective jurors to not read or watch any news coverage of the case or do any independent research. They may not discuss the case with their family or friends.
The judge also told the group to answer their questionnaires without regard to how their answers will be perceived.
“Please do not answer on what you think you should say or what you think is socially desirable,” Colville said.
The judge told the panel that once the trial begins, each court day will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays, with the exception of every other Friday.
The jurors are not expected to be sequestered.
Paula Reed Ward is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Paula by email at pward@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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