A Nevada man with a swastika and the phrases “Baby Nazi” and “most wanted” tattooed across his neck and forehead, respectively, won’t have to face a jury of his peers with those symbols visible after a judge ordered they be covered in an effort to give him a fair trial, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported on Monday.
During jury selection last month for Bayzle Morgan’s trial on armed robbery charges, prospective jurors said the defendant’s tattoos, which also include white supremacist symbols in place of his shaved eyebrows, made them feel “nervous” and “shaky.” They also said Morgan’s teardrop tattoo could convey “previous criminal acts,” according to the report.
After delaying the trial to consider methods to ensure jurors not be influenced by Morgan’s appearance, District Judge Richard Scotti ordered that Morgan’s tattoos from the neck up be covered by makeup. A makeup artist look about two hours on Friday to fully cover Morgan’s facial tattoos as prosecutors, along with court and prison officials, looked on.
Morgan, 24, was accused of stealing a motorcycle at gunpoint in 2013. In a separate case, he faces the death penalty for allegedly killing a 75-year-old woman days before that robbery. He was accused of breaking into the victim’s home and pistol-whipping her hard enough that his gun broke before shooting her in the head, the paper reported.
You can see a full slideshow of the defendant’s tattoos over at the Review-Journal.
