Judge orders families to limit testimony in Rodriguez trial

(AP) A judge says families must limit their testimony in the trial of Alfonso Rodriguez Jr.

Rodriguez was convicted of kidnapping resulting in the death of University of North Dakota student Dru Sjodin. A jury will decide whether he receives the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson says he believes testimony from Sjodin's family should be limited to a "thumbnail sketch" of Sjodin and descriptions of the family's loss.

The jury of seven women and five men ruled last week that Rodriguez was eligible for the death penalty. Jurors found that Sjodin, 22, from Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, was tortured and died during a kidnapping.