Jury to be selected in Orlando shooting spree murder trial

Jason Rodriguez found competent to stand trial

ORLANDO, Fla. – Jury selection started on Monday in the murder trial of Jason Rodriguez, the man accused of going on a shooting rampage in downtown Orlando.

Attorneys said media coverage of the case will make picking a jury difficult. Rodriguez's public defenders are asking potential jurors how familiar they are with the 2009 shooting.

Jury selection will continue on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.

Rodriguez, 44, stands accused of opening fire inside the Gateway Center and shooting six people, one of whom died. 

Rodriguez had been fired from the architectural firm two years earlier. Authorities believe he was upset he could not get unemployment benefits and knew the difference between right and wrong.

Doctors previously testified that Rodriguez suffers from hallucinations and schizophrenia, but a judge last week found him competent to stand trial for murder.

Rodriguez's attorneys plan to argue he was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and was insane at the time of the shooting.

If convicted, Rodriguez faces up to life in prison.


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