MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) -- Lawyers for suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore say they don't believe he can get a fair trial before the Alabama Court of the Judiciary on judicial ethics charges.

The attorneys said in a statement Thursday that it may be "inevitable" that Moore will be removed from office for not obeying a federal court order to move his Ten Commandments monument from the lobby of the Alabama Judicial Building. [...]

Moore had asked that his trial be held somewhere like the 7,000-seat Montgomery Civic Center or the 1,200-seat Davis Theater in Montgomery, calling the Supreme Court courtroom that is normally used by the Court of the Judiciary "small" and "restrictive." Moore claimed any smaller location would restrict media access and deny him his constitutional right to a public trial.

But the court rejected Moore's request in a decision Wednesday, ruling instead that the case would be heard in the 210-seat Supreme Court courtroom to minimize costs and maintain proper security. The court laid out a plan for setting aside seats for the general public and the media.

Moore's lawyers said the decision meant the chief justice cannot obtain a "fair, public trial." [...]