Accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is shown in a courtroom sketch next to Judge George O'Toole on the first day of jury selection at the federal courthouse in Boston
IN PHOTO: Accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is shown in a courtroom sketch next to Judge George O'Toole (R) on the first day of jury selection at the federal courthouse in Boston, Massachusetts January 5, 2015. O'Toole on Monday began the process of selecting the jury that will hear the trial of Tsarnaev, telling the first of some 1,200 prospects to read no more news accounts about the deadly blasts. Tsarnaev, a 21-year-old ethnic Chechen who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, could get the death penalty if convicted of killing three people and injuring more than 260 others by detonating a pair of homemade bombs placed amid a crowd of thousands of spectators at the race's finish line on April 15, 2013. REUTERS/Jane Flavell Collins

The process of selecting the jury for hearing the trial of Boston Marathon bombing accused Dzhokhar Tsarnaev started on Monday. The suspect, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, may get the death penalty if convicted.

Tsarnaev is accused of injuring more than 260 and killing three and by detonating a pair of homemade bombs which were placed amid a crowd of thousands of spectators at the race's finish line in April 2013. The 21-year-old ethnic Chechen pleaded not guilty to all 30 charges against him. New York Times reports that charges against Tsarnaev include conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death. There are 17 counts which carry a probable death penalty. U.S. District Judge George O'Toole started the process of selecting the jury for the trial process. He said that the panel of 12 and six alternates would only consider the evidence presented in court. O'Toole indicated that he would allow around three weeks for selecting the jury. He told the group of 200 prospects that opening statements would begin around Jan. 26. The initial screening of for the jury has already started through surveys sent out by mail. Reuters reports that a moderate police presence was visible outside the courthouse. Officers with dogs walked the perimeter of the courthouse building as cruisers patrolled the area.

Tsarnaev, who was arrested four days after the bombing, was sitting quietly with his lawyers during the proceedings. He occasionally touched his face and looked around. Tsarnaev's family moved to the United States around a decade before the attack. The family settled just outside Boston in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His attorneys earlier requested to move the proceedings out of Boston. According to them, it will be impossible for a local jury to be impartial because of strong news coverage. However, O'Toole and a federal appeals court blocked the request. Prosecutors have accused Tsarnaev of writing messages inside of the hull of the drydocked boat. Court documents reveal that the messages were about the U.S. government "killing innocent civilians." It was the same boat where the 21-year-old was discovered after hiding there for four days after the attack. It also indicated that the attack had been politically motivated.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@IBTimes.com.au