NC nursing home slayings suspect wants trial moved

CARTHAGE, N.C. — The North Carolina man charged in a nursing home shooting rampage that killed eight people wants his trial moved.

The Fayetteville Observer reported Friday that Superior Court Judge James Webb told lawyers for Robert Kenneth Stewart they must request moving the trial out of Moore County by May.

The judge denied a request by prosecutors to start the murder trial early this fall. Prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty.

The 46-year-old Stewart is accused of walking into a Carthage nursing home last March and killing seven patients and a nurse. Stewart’s estranged wife worked at the nursing home but was unhurt after locking herself in a room.

The rampage ended after Stewart and a Carthage police officer were wounded after exchanging gunfire.

Information from: The Fayetteville Observer

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