A metal detector outside the courtroom. Upwards of 10 U.S. marshals inside it. The possibility of defendants wearing shackles. And an anonymous jury.

There was little normalcy in the 14th floor federal courtroom in downtown Chicago on Wednesday as jury selection kicked off in a high-profile trial of six defendants facing racketeering, murder and drug charges for their alleged roles in a violent South Side gang known as “The Hobos.”