Eaton Centre shooter seeks new trial over jury-selection process

A man who gunned down two people in Toronto's landmark Eaton Centre mall is asking for a new trial, arguing the jury that convicted him more than two years ago was improperly selected.

• Eaton Centre shootings: Christopher Husbands' path to violence

Christopher Husbands was found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Nixon Nirmalendran, 22, and Ahmed Hassan, 24.

He was also found guilty of five counts of aggravated assault and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm in the June 2012 shooting that sent hordes of panicked shoppers running for the exits.

Husbands, whose lawyers had put forward a defence of not criminally responsible due to post-traumatic stress disorder, was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 30 years.

His lawyer has said the sentence is unprecedented for second-degree murder.

The appeal, which is being heard Friday in Toronto, focuses largely on the manner in which jurors were chosen and refers heavily to an appeal court ruling in a case by the same trial judge.