Aug. 12: Anthony Sowell sits with his eyes close during the court session in Cleveland. (Pool/The Plain Dealer)
CLEVELAND – Attorneys for a Cleveland serial killer who dumped the remains of 11 women in and around his house will ask a judge for a new trial because of comments made by the jury forewoman.
She told reporters after jurors recommended the death penalty that Anthony Sowell (SOH'-wehl) winked at her in what she believed was an attempt to win favorable treatment.
Lawyers for the 52-year-old Sowell plan to argue at a hearing Tuesday that the juror may have developed a bias against the suspect even before testimony began.
The trial judge accepted the jury's recommendation earlier this month and sentenced Sowell to die. The conviction and death sentence are automatically appealed to the state Supreme Court.
The victims' remains were found at Sowell's home nearly two years ago.
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