Court Shooting Spree Suspect Gets Hearing

Because every judge in Fulton County had a relationship with one or more of the victims, Nichols, 33, appeared before Magistrate Judge Frank R. Cox, from neighboring Cobb County. Cox ordered Nichols held without bail on an earlier rape charge and did not set a date for his next hearing.

A subdued, expressionless Nichols spoke once, when Cox asked him during the brief hearing at the Fulton County jail if he had any questions.

"Not at this time," Nichols said.

According to authorities, Nichols overpowered the lone female deputy guarding him Friday, knocking her unconscious. He then took her gun, officials said, and shot the judge and a court reporter before killing a deputy who pursued him. Nichols escaped and later was linked to the murder of U.S. Immigration and Customs agent David G. Wilhelm in a residential neighborhood north of Atlanta. He surrendered Saturday morning after a 26-hour search.

In an appearance Tuesday on CNN's "Larry King Live," Nichols' elder brother, Mark, said the family was stunned to see him accused of the murders. Brian was the successful kid in the family -- he lived in the upscale Buckhead neighborhood, worked for eight years as an engineer at Hewlett-Packard, and played keyboards at a church he attended regularly, Mark Nichols, 37, said.

"It doesn't seem like it's real," he said. "All this is like a dream that I hope I can wake up from. I'm tired, worn out. I haven't slept in three days. I haven't eaten. That's my only brother and I love him."

Meanwhile Tuesday, Gov. Sonny Perdue announced a $10,000 reward for Ashley Smith, the 26-year-old woman who turned Nichols in to police after he held her hostage.

"I think Ashley Smith has earned the money," Perdue said.

At a memorial across the street from the courthouse, Chaplain Warren L. Henry said that Smith apparently had calmed Nichols by reading from a religious self-help book. "On March 11, we arrived at the Fulton County courthouse to have our world totally rearranged. We witnessed a battle of good versus evil, right versus wrong, heaven versus hell," Henry said. "There was an angel sent from heaven, sitting in her