Nichols’ Siblings Testify, Recall Bomb Conspirator as Gentle
Convicted Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry L. Nichols was a gentle child who has turned to God in recent years, his brother and sister testified Monday as they tried to persuade a jury to spare his life.
The defense opened its case in the penalty phase of Nichols’ trial by calling the two to the stand. The jury that convicted Nichols last month of 161 counts of murder for his role in the bombing will decide whether to give him a death sentence or life in prison.
Nichols, 49, is serving a life sentence without parole after being convicted on federal charges of manslaughter and conspiracy in the deaths of eight U.S. officers in the April 19, 1995, blast. The current trial is for the others who were killed in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.
Jurors saw pictures of Nichols as a boy holding a fish in rural Michigan. They also heard Leslie Nichols tell how his brother was ready to donate his skin for a graft after he was severely burned.
The defense is expected to finish presenting its case within the week.
Last week, state prosecutors called on the jury to vote to execute Nichols, saying he was a “continuing threat to society.”
Timothy J. McVeigh, Nichols’ Army buddy, was convicted in a federal trial and executed in 2001 for setting off the blast.
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