Alleged 'American Sniper' Killer Paranoid After Marine Service, Mom Says

The mother of accused "American Sniper" killer Eddie Ray Routh described in court today how her "good kid" became paranoid after his Marine service.

Jodi Routh was the second defense witness called to the stand in Texas today and gave the most thorough portrait to date of her son's early life. She said he got "fair grades" as a youngster and played on his high school football team.

"His dad took him hunting and taught him about firearms," she said, which is something he and famed sniper Chris Kyle, whom Routh is accused of killing in 2013, had in common.

The defense launched into its case today by showing the host of long rifles found at the crime scene, a shooting range, including Kyle's personalized gun that had "American Sniper" written on the handle.

Jodi Routh noted that her son changed after he returned from the Marines after having served in Iraq and Haiti. During the humanitarian mission in Haiti, she said he "helped clean up bodies from beaches."

She said he was "not happy-go-lucky" when he came back. "Sometimes he wasn't able to express how he was feeling," she said.

Jodi Routh said her son admitted himself to a veterans' hospital for three days in 2011 after trying to kill himself with a gun.

She was the one who made the connection with Kyle, and when she said her son had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, the famed sniper allegedly said he would love to help because he had suffered from PTSD as well.