Death penalty looms over Pittsburgh synagogue massacre trial

By MARK SCOLFORO
Associated Press

The Pennsylvania man charged with killing 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue tried for years to avoid a federal jury trial. Ultimately those efforts failed, and jury selection is less than two weeks away. The 50-year-old Robert Bowers had offered to plead guilty to the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history only if prosecutors take the death penalty off the table. But the Justice Department rejected that offer. Some argue the death penalty was made for egregious cases like the Tree of Life massacre. But families of some victims wanted the deal, in part to avoid painful testimony when the case goes to trial.