NEW YORK: Accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is due to make his first public appearance in 17 months when he steps into court Thursday for final preparations for his January trial.
Held in Fort Devens prison hospital around 70 kilometers (44 miles) from the federal court in Boston where he will face trial, 21-year-old Tsarnaev, has not been seen in public since he pleaded not guilty in July 2013.
He faces the death penalty over the April 15, 2013 attacks, which were the most serious in the United States since the 9/11 Al-Qaeda hijackings.
Two pressure cooker bombs planted at the finish line of the Marathon killed three people and wounded 264, plunging the world-famous sporting event into mourning and reviving domestic fears of terrorism.
His trial is due to begin on January 5 with jury selection and Thursday's hearing will be the last to wrap up the final details.
Tsarnaev, emigrated with his family to the United States in 2002 and became a naturalized American in 2012.
He and his older brother Tamerlan alone are accused of planting the bombs in back packs near the finish line of the marathon.
Tamerlan was killed in a shootout with police as the pair tried to escape the Boston area several days later. An injured Dzhokhar was captured while hiding in a boat parked in a suburban backyard.
Three months later in July 2013, Tsarnaev, appeared in a federal court in Boston with a cast on his left arm down to his fingers and his left eye swollen.
He wore an orange prison jumpsuit as the 30 charges were read out against him, which include conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death and bombing a public place resulting in death.
He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
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