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At the short
hearing, alleged shooter Adam Purinton, 51, sat quietly, wearing
an orange jumpsuit and looking haggard, his hair scraggly,
sometimes whispering to his attorney.
Purinton is charged with first-degree murder in the shooting
death of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32. He is also charged with two
counts of attempted murder for wounding Alok Madasani, 32, and
an American, Ian Grillot, 24, who tried to intervene.
The shootings raised concerns in India, which sends many
immigrants to the United States, and highlighted a spike in hate
speech and alleged hate crimes in America in recent months.
The Southern Poverty Law Center has said the number of hate
groups in the United States rose for a second straight year in
2016, linking the increase to the recent U.S. election, in which
heated rhetoric targeted immigrants, refugees and Muslims.
The appearance was Purinton's second since the Feb. 22 shootings
at Austin’s Bar and Grill in Olathe, a Kansas City suburb.
Another hearing was scheduled to be held in May to determine a
schedule for more hearings and a trial.
(Reporting by Karen Dillon; Writing by Sharon Bernstein; Editing
by James Dalgleish)
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