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Lawyers for Capital Gazette gunman are down to their final hours to change the suspect's plea

Posted at 2:36 PM, Apr 29, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-29 15:49:32-04

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Attorneys for the man accused of killing five people at the Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis are nearing a deadline to change his plea from not guilty to an insanity defense.

Lawyers for the Gazette shooter have until the close of business Monday to file a change of plea to not criminally responsible.

Five people were shot to death in the Capital Gazette newsroom last year. The gunman was indicted on 23 charges, including murder. His trial is set for November.

The 39-year-old has been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Gerald Fischman, Rob Hiaasen, John McNamara, Rebecca Ann Smith and Wendi Winters.

During a court hearing earlier this month, an attorney for the gunman made several references to his client's "bizarre behavior" leading up to the attack.