The Main Players in the US v. Robert Bowers Case
A Look at the Major Players in the Robert Bowers Trial: Judge, Defense Attorneys, and Prosecutors
On April 24, 2023, jury selection for the Robert Bowers trial commences where the presiding judge and both sides will come together and interview the potential jurors before the trial starts. The trial is projected to start by the middle to end of May. It will be closed to the public and will potentially run through the summer. After going through the motions to most likely find Robert Bowers guilty, the two sides will argue whether or not he deserves the death penalty. Below we will look at who the major players in the courtroom will be.
Who is the Judge?
For four years, from 2018-2022, the case was overseen by U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose. She retired in February of 2022, and the Robert Bowers trial was re-assigned to U.S. District Judge Robert J. Colville. Judge Colville is on the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. He was confirmed by the Senate on December 19, 2019 after President Trump nominated him.
Who is defending Bowers?
Bowers is unable to afford his own attorney, so he had requested court-appointed attorneys. The court has appointed attorneys who specialize in representing defendants facing the death penalty. Judy Clarke, the attorney headlining Bowers’ team has represented numerous high-profile defendants. These include The Unabomber (Ted Kaczynski) and the Boston Marathon bomber (Dzhokar Tsarnaev).
Joining Clarke is Elisa A. Long, attorney with Federal Public Defender’s Office.
Michael J. Novora, First assistant federal public defender with Federal Public Defender’s Office.
Ashwin Cattamanchi will also be joining Bowers’ team, coming as a Federal public defender in the Middle District of Tennessee.
A late addition to the team is Matthew Rubenstein. He is the face of the defending side during jury selection, asking the potential jurors questions. He is very experienced as he is the Director of the Capital Resource Counsel Project, one of the main federal legal resources for defendants facing the death penalty.
Lastly, Michael Norman Burt, who has worked on other death penalty cases, even working alongside Judy Clarke in the Eric Rudolph case (Olympic Bomber).
Who will be prosecuting Bowers?
The prosecution team is led by Troy Rivetti, the acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Soo C Song, the Criminal Division Chief is also a huge part of the prosecuting team as she has litigated in multiple high-profile cases.
Eric G. Olshan joins the team as President Biden’s nominee for U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Mary J. Hahn, an attorney who was on the team that prosecuted Dylann Roof, the Charleston, S.C. church shooter who was sentenced to death for hate crimes.
Barry Disney and Nicole A Vazquez Schmitt round out the team.