A 23-year-old man charged with killing a Transportation Security Administration officer and wounding three others during a shooting rampage at Los Angeles International Airport must remain in custody without bail and return to court later this month, a federal magistrate judge ruled Wednesday.
Paul Ciancia, 23, appeared in the courtroom with bruises on his face and a bandage on his neck, according to the Associated Press. It marked the first time the suspect has been seen in public since the Nov. 1 attack at the bustling airport.
The suspect, shackled at his hands and feet, did not enter a plea to a murder charge, according to the AP. If he is convicted, he faces the death penalty.
Authorities say the unemployed auto mechanic intended to fire at TSA officers when he killed Gerardo I. Hernandez, a 39-year-old father of two, after firing a semiautomatic weapon at what investigators have described as point-blank range.
Hernandez is the first officer to have been killed in the line of duty in the agency's 12-year history.
Three other people sustained injuries during the attack at the airport's Terminal 3, which serves Virgin America and other major airlines.
Ciancia was shot and wounded by airport police responding to the frantic scene.
A 22-page autopsy report released Nov. 22 said a note found in the suspect's possession expressed anger against police and the TSA. A source involved in the investigation has said that Ciancia carried a handwritten "manifesto" explaining the motive behind his attack.
A judge Wednesday scheduled a preliminary hearing for Dec. 18 and an arraignment for Dec. 26, according to NBC Los Angeles. If he is indicted before Dec. 18, the preliminary hearing date is likely to change, the station reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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