Suspected killer seeking change of venue

A man accused of killing five people, including a mid-Missouri man, is seeking a change of venue, as well as a change of judge.

Pablo Serrano has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of Randy Nordman.

Nordman was killed on March 8 at his New Florence home. The case started a massive manhunt in Montgomery County for Serrano. He was captured by authorities nearly 24 hours later.

State prosecutors filed formal paperwork to seek the death penalty earlier in May.

Court documents filed this week say Serrano wants a venue selected from “communities with diverse populations,” particularly where people will have had “experience with neighbors, coworkers, and other citizens of Hispanic descent.”

The filing says Serrano has a right to a jury selected from a “fair cross-section” of the community. It further cites U.S. Census data in naming Sullivan, McDonald, and Pulaski Counties as those with the highest percentage of Hispanic populations in the state. The filing also claims Jackson, St. Louis, Clay, and St. Louis City as the counties which would provide “the greatest opportunity for jurors to have had contact with Hispanics or Latinos.”