The trial of a Missouri white supremacist began on Monday after he was charged with killing three people in a shooting spree.

Frazier Glenn Cross, 74, is a former senior member of the Ku Klux Klan who will represent himself during his state trial in Olathe, Kansas.

Mr Cross is charged for fatally shooting 69-year-old William Corporan, his 14-year-old grandson Reat Underwood and 53-year-old Terri Lamanno, WDAF-TV reported.

The shootings took place outside the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City and outside a Jewish retirement home in Overland Park, Kansas.

Mr Cross allegedly drove up to both facilities and began shooting his gun. His 14-year-old grandson was set to attend a singing competition when he and Ms Corporan were fatally shot.

In an interview with the Kansas City Star, Mr Miller has said he "wanted to make damned sure I killed some Jews or attacked the Jews before I died.” However, none of the victims were Jewish.

Johnson County District Court Judge Thomas Kelly Ryan ruled in May that the white supremacist could serve as his own lawyer. Mr Cross contested that he did not trust his public defenders. However, in preliminary hearings, Judge Ryan had admonished Mr Cross for speaking out of turn and being disruptive.

The Southern Poverty Law Center identified Mr Cross as a former Klan member and anti-semite. The group previously sued the suspect for "operating an illegal paramilitary organization" and "using intimidation tactic" against African-Americans.

 

Additional reporting by Reuters.