A 45-year-old Biloxi, Mississippi, man accused in the shooting death of a Waffle House server after she told him not to smoke made his first court appearance and asked about the death penalty.
The Sun Herald reports Johnny Mount asked Judge Albert Fountain on Monday whether the death penalty would be involved in his case.
Fountain said Mount faces only one count of first-degree murder and not a capital offense.
The judge said the court will appoint a public defender to represent Mount.
Mount is charged in the slaying of server 52-year-old Julie Brightwell.
He is being held on a $2 million bond.
Biloxi police say Brightwell was trying to get Mount to stop smoking in the restaurant when he pulled out a handgun and shot her.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
