Jury selection began in the case of the 2006 shooting attack on the Seattle Jewish federation.
Some 400 potential jurors turned out Friday in the high-profile case in which one woman was killed and five others wounded. It is estimated that it will take three weeks to empanel the jury, according to the Seattle Times.
Naveed Haq has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to aggravated first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder, among other charges, including violating the state’s hate-crimes law.
Haq entered the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle building and shot at people while shouting against Israel and the Iraq war.
Defense attorneys say the publicity surrounding the case could make it difficult to find an impartial jury, the Times reported, and also are concerned about the term “hate crime,” which they call “inflammatory.”
