The death penalty trial of accused murderer Pablo Fernando Maldonado begins Wednesday in the courtroom of Newton County Superior Court Judge Horace Johnson.

The 25 year old is accused of being the ringleader in the murder of Rockdale landscaper Timothy Clements, whose body was found in Snapping Shoals Creek in the summer of 2009.

A death penalty trial typically takes at least a week, oftentimes longer. Following the sentencing phase, jurors then move into the penalty phase, where they decide if the defendant's actions warrant the death penalty or another, lesser, sentence.