photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Rodney Marshall, left, is pictured Friday, May 1, 2026, in Douglas County District Court with his attorneys, Jennifer Amyx and Branden Bell.

Updated at 12:30 p.m. Monday, May 4

The trial in a 4-year-old double-homicide case got underway Monday morning in Douglas County District Court with jury selection and is expected to take three weeks.

The first panel of 30-plus potential jurors convened in the courtroom of Judge Amy Hanley, to be followed by five more panels in coming days. Hanley intends to seat 16 jurors, a number that includes four alternates in case any of the 12 regular jurors can’t participate at any point during the trial. It was unclear when opening arguments might be given, but the earliest possibility appeared to be sometime Wednesday.

Potential jurors were introduced to the defendant, Rodney Marshall, who is accused of two murders in the first-degree, four counts of attempted capital murder, two counts of aggravated assault and one count of fleeing and eluding law enforcement — all stemming from an alleged crime spree on July 31, 2022. Deputy District Attorney David Melton told the potential jurors that the case would not involve the death penalty.

As might be expected with a three-week trial in May, many of the potential jurors — who must be at least 18, live in Douglas County and be a U.S. citizen — indicated that serving on a jury would be challenging. One potential juror told the court that, though he was 18, he was still in high school and had a number of projects due this month. One KU student-athlete said that he would miss exams and a track meet. One PhD student said the three-week disruption could delay her graduation. Others indicated that they had nonrefundable vacations scheduled or weddings to attend. On top of seasonal reasons, others said they had medical, job-related or other reasons for not serving.

At one point, Hanley said that, of the morning panel, they could wind up with only one potential juror if everyone were excused for the various reasons listed. She told the panel that documentation would be required for all excuses. At the outset she reminded the panel that jury duty necessarily involved some hardships but that it was critical to the proper functioning of the American criminal justice system.

As attorneys questioned the potential jurors about possible biases and other matters, Marshall sat with his two appointed lawyers, Branden Bell and Jennifer Amyx. Unlike at previous court dates when he appeared in jail clothes and shackles, Marshall was clean-shaven Monday and dressed in a suit jacket and necktie. He took notes and frequently whispered to Amyx as the potential jurors were questioned.

As the Journal-World has reported, Marshall has been set to stand trial multiple times, but the case has been plagued with numerous delays over the years, mostly related to conflicts between Marshall and his appointed attorneys. Before his latest set of lawyers, he had half a dozen others who asked to be removed from his case, largely, it appears, due to the difficulty of working with him. In the case of two lawyers, as the Journal-World reported, withdrawal was allowed after Marshall reportedly instigated a physical altercation with them. In other instances, conflicts — not publicly detailed — arose that made representation not “viable.”

On the heels of one delay, Hanley told Marshall, “My frustration level is extremely high.” She warned him: “There is a limit regarding the right to counsel. It’s limited by your actions, your behavior and your choices.”

As recently as this spring Marshall put forth the new claim that he should be immune from prosecution in one of the killings based on self-defense — a claim that Hanley denied earlier this month, saying the circumstantial evidence offered in support of Marshall’s belief that deadly force was justified was simply “not credible.”

Marshall is alleged to have shot Shelby McCoy, 52, at 1115 Tennessee St. before riding across town on a moped, in a costume, to shoot William D. O’Brien, 43, at 325 Northwood Lane. After the shootings, police staked out Marshall’s residence in central Lawrence, and when he tried to leave the home, he led multiple officers on a chase while allegedly firing a pistol out of his window. He was eventually arrested on Kansas Highway 10 near Eudora in a dramatic showdown involving around two dozen police vehicles in the middle of the highway.

Marshall confessed to the killings almost immediately after his arrest — telling Detective M.T. Brown that he shot McCoy and O’Brien because the country singer Charlie Daniels had somehow inspired him to seek justice against “child molesters.” Law enforcement officials have stated that they had no reason to suspect the two men of such crimes.

Marshall, 55, has been held on a bond of $1.5 million since his arrest in 2022.

photo by: Lawrence Police Department UAV Drone Image

The Lawrence Police Department on Monday, Aug. 22, 2022, showed video of a suspect in a July 2022 double homicide being arrested.