The first trial in the case of eight members of a single Ohio family shot to death more than six years ago is about to begin after several delays related to the coronavirus pandemic and negotiations with other defendants.
Defendant George Wagner IV was charged in Pike County Court in the 2016 slayings of the Rhoden family near Piketon in southern Ohio.
Wagner, 30, faces the death penalty if convicted. Jury selection was expected to start on Monday in county court in Waverly, about 65 miles (105 kilometres) south of Columbus, with opening statements next week.
Authorities say the shootings of seven adults and a teenage boy stemmed from a dispute over custody of a child that Jake Wagner had with one of the victims. Wagner's parents and his brother, Jake Wagner, were also charged.