Lawyers Of Marathon Bombing Suspect: Jury Pool Lacks Minorities

FILE - This file photo provided Friday, April 19, 2013 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation shows Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, charged with using a weapon of mass destruction in the bombings o... FILE - This file photo provided Friday, April 19, 2013 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation shows Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, charged with using a weapon of mass destruction in the bombings on April 15, 2013 near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. On Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder authorized the government to seek the death penalty in the case against Tsarnaev. (AP Photo/Federal Bureau of Investigation, File) MORE LESS
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BOSTON (AP) — Lawyers for the Boston Marathon bombing suspect have asked a judge to dismiss the indictment against their client, saying there aren’t enough minorities and younger people in the jury pool.

Lawyers filed a motion Thursday saying the selection process violated Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s (joh-HAHR’ tsahr-NEYE’-ehvz) constitutional right to have a jury that represents a “fair cross section of the community.”

They say blacks, people under 30 and Boston residents were underrepresented in the group of potential jurors questioned by the judge.

The prospective jurors were chosen from a population of about 5 million in eastern Massachusetts.

Jury selection is nearing a close. Court officials say the trial could begin next week.

A federal appeals court hasn’t yet ruled on a defense request to move the trial out of Massachusetts.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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