Jurors will soon determine sanity plea in Nichols case

ATLANTA --- Prosecutors called for a swift and just verdict against the gunman in a deadly courthouse shooting spree as they delivered closing arguments to jurors who will soon decide whether the defendant was insane at the time of the killings.

Arguments ended Wednesday in the trial against Brian Nichols, who could face the death penalty for the 2005 rampage that began in a downtown Atlanta courthouse and left a judge, a court reporter, a deputy and a federal agent dead.

Defense attorneys have not contended that Mr. Nichols didn't commit the killings, which were documented by dozens of eyewitnesses and videotaped evidence. Mr. Nichols has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, claiming he was gripped by a delusional compulsion that he was a slave rebelling against authority.

Nichols attorney Josh Moore said his client was no criminal mastermind, telling the jury that his murderous plan "only succeeded because a thousand things went wrong."

"Rise above the emotion and the heartbreak and the sorrow of this case," he urged the panel. "Look at the evidence and weigh it with fairness. It's going to take courage, but we know at the end of the day you will come to a just conclusion."

Prosecutor Clint Rucker, who held out a judge's gavel to the jury to remind them of the shooting victims, said that Mr. Nichols' argument "has so many holes, it looks like a piece of cheese."

"It didn't have anything to do with insanity or delusion. The defendant was angry and he was frustrated," Mr. Rucker said. "He is conniving, he is cold-blooded, he is vicious, he is remorseless, and he is extremely, extremely dangerous."

Jurors were expected to receive their instructions later Wednesday and begin deliberating soon after.