Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's hearing on Thursday marked the first time he was seen in public since his capture and arraignment in July 2013. It will be the final hearing before his trial, where he stands accused of perpetrating the Boston Marathon bombing.
The New York Times reported that Tsarnaev, 21, was without orange jumpsuit, appearing in a black sweater and trousers. He had also developed facial hair. He looked quite different from his first court appearance, which took place right after he and his late brother's shootout with police, exhibiting him with a swollen face, and bandages.
Fourteen victims of the homemade pressure cooker bomb that killed three and wounded more than 250 were in attendance, sitting together on one side of the gallery.
"We prayed for you. Be strong, my son. We know you are innocent," the mother-in-law of Ibragim Todashev shouted at Tsarnaev in Russian.
According to The Associated Press, Todashev was shot by an FBI agent in May 2013 when being questioned about his and Tamarlan Tsarnaev's possible participation in 2011 triple killing in suburban Waltham.
"Stop killing innocent people. Stop killing innocent boys," she shouted at law enforcement as Tsarnaev was escorted out of the courtroom without acknowledging her.
Prosecutors asked that Tsarnaev appear in court to say whether or not he was satisfied with his representation going into trial — a move that will make an appeal less likely.
"Yes sir," Tsarnaev said in response to the judges question about whether his lawyers had kept him up-to-date on the proceedings of the case.
Jury selection will begin Jan. 5, and the trial is expected to last up to five months. The death penalty is not legal in Massachusetts, however Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. authorized the government to seek the death penalty in January on federal charges.