ST. LOUIS — Thomas Kinworthy sometimes rocked in his chair Friday as a courtroom full of about 80 potential jurors was being narrowed to the 12 who will decide his fate for allegedly killing a St. Louis police officer in 2020.
His dark hair swayed just past his shoulders as he rocked, and his eyes darted around at the ceiling when they weren’t focused on a notepad in front of him, where he appeared to be scribbling and writing.
Kinworthy also now has a salt-and-pepper beard. His appearance is a stark contrast to the clean-shaven look he had when he was arrested four years ago.
When court was in recess, Kinworthy talked to his attorneys and sometimes just himself.
His defense is preparing to argue he is not guilty of the first-degree murder of St. Louis Police Officer Tamarris Bohannon by reason of insanity.
Bohannon was 29 years old when he was killed. He left behind his wife, Alexis, and three young children.
Kinworthy is also charged with shooting and wounding another officer who responded with Bohannon to a house in the Tower Grove neighborhood. Police said Kinworthy forced a random couple out of their home at gunpoint and opened fire on the responding officers.
The jury is expected to be seated Tuesday, and opening statements are expected to follow.
Most of the prosecutor’s questions for the jury pool focused on whether potential jurors could set aside their personal beliefs about mental illness when determining Kinworthy’s guilt.
At the time of the shooting, Kinworthy, then 43, had already served time for shooting a man during a road rage incident in Florida.
He had a domestic violence incident involving his wife and children in 2019.
Kinworthy started off 2020 with an arrest and sexual assault charges in Florida. Weeks after that, police busted him with an arsenal of weapons inside his car.
He missed a court date days before he allegedly shot Bohannon and police believe he was trying to leave the country.
Kinworthy has friends and family members in the St. Louis area, but his connection to the Tower Grove neighborhood where the shooting took place remains unclear.
Police said shortly before Kinworthy shot at the officers, he shot at a homeless man in the Tower Grove neighborhood before breaking into that couple’s home.
Bohannon was the first to respond to the call for a shooting, and Kinworthy shot him in the head, according to court documents.
Sources familiar with the investigation told 5 On Your Side Kinworthy then took up a higher position in the house and fired on officers who had rushed to Bohannon’s aide as they tried to move him away from the scene. One officer was shot in the leg.
St. Louis investigators believe Kinworthy intentionally lured police to the scene.
His trial is expected to last two weeks.