Boston bombings: Trial date set for Dzokhar Tsarnaev

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-26162314

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A judge has set a November trial date for Boston marathon bombing suspect Dzokhar Tsarnaev, rejecting defence lawyer pleas for more time.

The accused has pleaded not guilty to 30 charges, of which 17 carry the possibility of capital punishment.

Prosecutors allege that the 20-year-old set off two pressure cooker bombs with his older brother Tamerlan, who later died in a police shoot-out.

The twin blasts killed three and injured more than 260 in April 2013.

Judge George O'Toole said he believed a trial date this November was "realistic and fair", despite defence lawyers arguing they needed more time to prepare their case.

Mr Tsarnaev will be charged under the federal death penalty law; Massachusetts abolished the use of capital punishment in 1984.