Judge James Bodiford said at a hearing Thursday on a defense motion that seeks to remove him from the case that his comments in a newspaper article four days after the March 11th, 2005, shooting spree and a statement he issued to the paper don't preclude him from serving on the case.

Defense lawyer Josh Moore told Superior Court Judge Daniel Coursey, who was assigned to hear the motion, that at the very least there is the potential for bias on Bodiford's part. Coursey says he will rule by next week.

Nichols is charged with killing four people after escaping from custody at the Fulton County Courthouse while on trial for rape on March 11th, 2005.

Nichols' lawyers say Bodiford should be removed because he told a newspaper in a story published four days after the shooting spree that he was friends with one of the victims, Superior Court Judge Rowland Barnes.

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