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Chris William Dean did not enter a plea. His attorneys asked for and were given five additional days to prepare for a hearing that will determine if Dean will become eligible for release pending trial.
The 35-year-old Dean entered the courtroom in handcuffs wearing a beige prison issue T-shirt and matching pants. He spent much of the five-minute appearance with his head down while he spoke quietly with his attorneys.
U.S. District Court Judge William Sessions told Dean his rights and asked him a series of questions such as his level of education, if he had ever been hospitalized for drug or alcohol problems and whether he understood the proceedings.
Dean answered most of the questions with a firm, but quiet 'yes, sir' or 'no, sir.'
The Pierceton, Ind., truck driver could face the death penalty if he is convicted on the charges that he sent a pipe bomb via United Parcel Service to Christopher Marquis, 17, after the two argued about the radio sale. Marquis' mother, Sheila Rockwell, 52, was seriously injured in the explosion that killed her son.
Dean was arrested March 20, a day after Marquis was killed. Federal agents were led to Dean through UPS shipping records and informants.
In court documents, prosecutors asked for a 60-day extension to gather and analyze evidence that will be presented to the grand jury that will be asked to indict Dean. The extra time can also be used by prosecutors to determine if they should seek the death penalty.
'The decision has not yet been made. It is being studied,' Vermont's U.S. Attorney Charles Tetzlaff said outside the courthouse of the death penalty. 'Attorney General (Janet) Reno will make the decision.'
Defense attorneys John Pacht and Bradley Stetler said outside the courthouse that they had not had time yet to thoroughly look at the case against their client.
But Pacht said Dean would be entering an innocent plea.
And the attorneys said they would probably ask Sessions to allow Dean to be released from prison pending trial. 'He has no criminal record and a strong work history,' Pacht said.
Prosecutors said in court documents they would ask Sessions to keep Dean in custody. If released Dean could pose a threat to friends who cooperated with agents investigating Marquis' death.
'It is difficult to conceive of a more dangerous crime,' the motion said.
The same document says that when agents searched Dean's home they found items that resembled those used in the bomb that killed Marquis and they even found the spot where a similar bomb had been tested before the fatal device was sent to Vermont.
