AUBURN, Maine - Maine's supreme court has denied the appeal of a convicted killer who contends his right to a public trial was violated.
Daniel Roberts contended the judge in the 2007 trial violated his Sixth Amendment right by questioning potential jurors behind closed doors, keeping people wearing gang colors from the courtroom, limiting entry to the courtroom to breaks between witnesses, and locking the courthouse doors around the time of the verdicts.
The high court dismissed his arguments on Thursday.
Roberts, a former Hell's Angels leader, is serving a 55-year sentence for shooting his ex-girlfriend in Sabattus in 2005 during a custody dispute. Prosecutors say he lured Melissa Mendoza to his home and shot her in the head. Roberts contended he fired in self defense after she showed up, armed and angry.