Tsarnaev Had Zero Reaction When Told He Faced Death

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev may have been badly wounded, with his face swollen, hand bandaged, and throat too injured to talk, but the young bomber apparently showed no signs of fear or regret during his hospital room court hearing Monday, reports NBC News. And when told the maximum penalty he was facing was death, Tsarnaev had no reaction: The heart monitor he was hooked up to registered "no blip at all," says a source. Experts, however, caution that emotional responses aren't always picked up by such monitors, and note that he may have been medicated at the time.

Meanwhile, the judge who conducted that hearing, Marianne Bowler, has been harshly criticized ever since it was revealed she informed Tsarnaev of his Miranda rights during the Monday hearing; right after that he stopped talking to investigators. "We have a long-standing tradition that the judiciary does not interfere with investigations. This sets a very dangerous precedent," said House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Rogers, who thinks the Justice Department should have intervened and forced a delay. Sources say Bowler told the DOJ on Saturday that she planned to read Tsarnaev his rights two days later, and a DOJ rep indicated that her actions were appropriate, reports the Wall Street Journal. "The rules of criminal procedure require the court to advise the defendant of his right to silence and his right to counsel during the initial appearance.'' (More Dzhokhar Tsarnaev stories.)