JEANNE MESERVE, CNN ANCHOR: Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh wants a date set for his execution. A Denver judge will hear the request today. McVeigh received the death penalty for the 1995 bombing of the Murrah federal building, which killed 168 people. CNN's Lilian Kim joins us from Denver with more -- Lilian.</s>LILIAN KIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jeanne -- Good afternoon, Jeanne. Going against the advice of his attorneys, Timothy McVeigh has asked to put a stop to his appeals process and set an execution date. In a hearing this afternoon, U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch will ask McVeigh questions and assess whether he is competent. The convicted bomber sits on death row in a federal penitentiary in Indiana, but he will appear in a courtroom here in Denver through a video-conference call. The 32-year-old was convicted three years ago of the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City. Since then, he's been sentenced to death, and his requested for a new trial had been turned down. McVeigh hasn't explained why he wants to stop the appeals. Some legal analysts think McVeigh wants to become a martyr for anti-government causes, but his lead attorney, Dennis Hartley, says McVeigh may be fed up with the restricted conditions in federal prison, where he has no human contact and is released from his cell one hour a day. The judge could do one of three things: grant McVeigh's request and set an execution date, deny his request, or he could order a competency hearing. The Oklahoma City bombing was the worst act of terrorism on U.S. soil, killing 168 people and injuring more than 500. Today's hearing is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. local time and should take no more than an hour. Lilian Kim, CNN, Denver, Colorado.</s>MESERVE: And McVeigh's request is the focus of "BURDEN OF PROOF," coming up at the bottom of the hour, right after NEWSDAY.
McVeigh Request to Go Before Judge Today