Judge Presiding Over Ohio Murder Trial Is Former NFL Standout

In this Sept. 30, 2004, file photo, Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Dick Ambrose poses on the sidelines at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland. The former Cleveland Browns linebacker is presiding over the trial of Anthony Sowell, a Cleveland man charged with killing 11 women and hiding their remains in and around his home. (AP)

Sowell, left, has pleaded not guilty and could face the death penalty if convicted. The women vanished one by one through September 2009, the month before Sowell's arrest. Police say they were lured with drugs and alcohol. (AP )

In this Jan. 4, 1981 file photo, Cleveland Browns linebacker Dick Ambrose (52) moves on as Browns safety Thom Darden (27) breaks up a pass for Oakland Raiders tight end Raymond Chester (88) in an AFC playoff football game in Cleveland. (AP )

Ambrose listens to testimony in the murder trial on July 12 (AP )

Ambrose, left, huddles at the bench with prosecuting attorneys Lauren Bell, left, Pinky Carr, center, and Richard Bombik, right, and defense attorney John Parker, second from right, during the trial on July 6. (AP )

A police interrogation video of Anthony Sowell is played for jurors during his trial Thursday, July 14, 2011, in Cleveland. Sowell told police that he began losing control of his anger about the time the victims started disappearing, according to an interrogation video played Thursday for jurors. Ambrose is seated on the left.  (AP )