NC - Hania Noelia Aguilar, 13, Lumberton, MEDIA MAPS & TIMELINE *NO DISCUSSION*

DNA Solves
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DNA Solves
Thanks for the update, P-Mommy!
Hoping the June date will hold. A DP case is usually given extra time, but it seems to me they have had enuff. JMO,
 
JUN 7, 2021
Man charged in murder of 13-year-old Lumberton girl not likely to be tried this year | WPDE
[...]

A hearing was held Monday afternoon at the Robeson County Courthouse for a status update in the case of 36-year-old Michael McLellan.

McLellan wasn't present, but his lawyers spoke on his behalf.

They said they're just not ready for trial due to setbacks they've faced.

"In addition to capital case, there are two unrelated rape cases in 2019. We are nowhere near prepared for trial just yet. In addition to COVID delays, there are some delays with experts," said Harold "Butch" Pope.

Pope said they filed two motions Monday morning for FBI data gathered in the case and the reserving of evidence.

A hearing on those motions will be held on June 28.

[...]
 
JUL 1, 2021
Judge approves new motions filed in Hania Aguilar murder case (wmbfnews.com)
The man accused of kidnapping and murdering 13-year-old Hania Aguilar appeared in court virtually Thursday morning for a hearing.

The hearing for Michael McLellan was regarding motions that the defendant’s attorneys had filed.

One motion was for discovery, specifically related to material that is in the possession of, or created by, the FBI as part of the investigation. The other motion was for the preservation of evidence in the case.

Judge Greg Bell agreed to both motions. The state did not offer any objections.

[...]
 
JUL 1, 2021
Case of the death of 13-year-old Hania Aguilar returns to court | Robesonian
[...]

McLellan joined the Thursday hearing via video call because of issues related to transportation back to Central Prison in Raleigh after the hearing, according to his attorneys. ... McLellan wore a yellow polo shirt and sat quietly during the hearing, only answering court officials when spoken to.

[...]

McLellan’s defense attorneys, Harold Pope and Geoffrey Hosford, asked for the full case file from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s lab records, including physical evidence such as DNA. Pope said the team has deployed a “company with forensic biologists, geneticists, DNA specialists” to review the evidence. The FBI already has released the lab report.

[...]

The items listed in the request are the full output from the FBI’s STRmix program used to interpret (DNA) results, all temporaneous FBI lab protocol standard operating procedures from DNA and zoology testing, FBI lab quality assurance manual, the most recent lab audit results and any and all photographs from investigating agencies, according to Pope.

“Once we have that information, we can provide that to our doctors, experts then they may provide us with a complete file report and assessment of evidence. Whether or not we may need retesting, we don’t know at this point,” he said.

[...]

If additional testing is needed, the motion to preserve evidence will come into play, Pope said.

[...]

Pope said a motion had been filed earlier to review evidence in the custody of the police department. In the past, he and Osman agreed on dates and met with the evidence custodian for other cases, Pope said.

Osman said he just suggested the defense notify the district attorney’s office of a date and time. He does not have to be present during the defense’s review with the evidence custodian, the assistant district attorney said.

An administrative hearing is set for Sept. 7.
 
NOV 8, 2022
Four years later, there is still no trial date set for the man accused of abducting and killing 13-year-old Hania Noeila Aguilar on Nov. 5, 2018, in Lumberton.

Aguilar was abducted from outside her family’s home back off of Elizabethtown Road in Lumberton. She was found dead on Nov. 27 in a wooded and swampy area off of Wire Grass Road in Lumberton.

Michael McLellan has been charged in the case and is still waiting to be tried.

[...]
 
DEC 8, 2022
A trial date has finally been set for the man accused of abducting and killing 13-year-old Hania Noeila Aguilar back on Nov. 5, 2018, in Lumberton.

Robeson County District Attorney Matthew Scott said Michael McLellan will be tried on Sept. 18, 2023.

Scott said a hearing on Monday helped to determine the date.

[...]

A pre-trial hearing is expected to be held in mid-2023.
 
DEC 8, 2022
Michael McLellan is scheduled to go on trial on Sept. 18, according to Robeson County District Attorney Matt Scott. The date was set during a hearing on Monday.

The date remains tentative, however. An administrative court date is scheduled in July, at which time Scott said it will determine whether the trial date will remain the same.

DEC 9, 2022
McLellan was arrested in the case and charged with ten felonies, including first-degree murder, first-degree forcible rape and first-degree kidnapping.

The state has previously stated that it will seek the death penalty for McLellan.
 
APR 27, 2023
North Carolina Superior Court Judge James Gregory Bell has continued the trial of a man accused of abducting and killing 13-year-old Hania Noeila Aguilar from September to sometime early next year.

Bell made the decision during a hearing Thursday morning at the Robeson County Courthouse.

[...]

“There is over 5,000 pages of discovery. And we just don’t represent Mr. McLellan on those 10 charges listed in a motion. We also represent him on unrelated charges. One being burglary and rape. One being strangulation and kidnapping, assault on a female. Another one being a firearm by a felon," said Pope.

[...]

Hania's mother, Celsa Hernandez, spoke to the judge through a translator.

"She believes they’ve had enough time. If the defendant didn’t give enough time for her daughter to live. Why should he be given a chance for the case to be continued? They’ve gone through a nightmare. And she feels like it’s time for justice to be served. And they miss Hania," the translator said on behalf of Hernandez.

[...]

“I don’t want to put the attorneys in a position where we come up in September, and then we find out we’ve got to continue. And I don’t want a situation where when the attorneys are forced to go into a trial and they’re not ready. And it ends up, we have to try the case a second time. I don’t want to do that. And I understand that y’all want justice as quick as possible, and I’m sure everybody has that same feeling. We just want to do it right the first time. And not have to do it more than once. So, here is my suggestion. Is that I will continue the case in the September calendar. That we put it on the June administrative Murder calendar. And by then, everybody will have a chance to figure out when is the best date to set this for trial in 2024," said Bell.

Both sides will meet in June and another date for trial could be set at that time.
 
JUN 5, 2023
The man charged in the abduction and murder of 13-year-old Hania Noeila Aguilar will stand trial around the last week in February of 2024, according to Robeson County District Attorney Matthew Scott.

McLellan will have two attorneys to represent him in the death penalty case.

A trial for Michael McLellan is scheduled for Feb. 5, according to Gwen Chavis, the Superior Court trial court coordinator in Robeson County. He had been tentatively set to go on trial on Sept. 18, but a motion to continue the trial was granted in April by Superior Court Judge James Gregory Bell.
 
JAN 23, 2024
The clerk of Superior Court in Robeson County confirmed Michael McLellan’s trial has been moved to July 22.

She said a hearing was held in December where the trial date was pushed back.

This is the third time the trial date has been moved. The original date was set for Sept. 18, 2023.

JAN 24, 2024
The trial for a man accused of kidnapping, raping and killing 13-year-old girl Hania Aguilar in Robeson County in 2018 has been delayed again.

Michael McLellan had been scheduled to go on trial on Feb. 5, but the case was moved to July 22 during a hearing on Tuesday in Robeson County Superior Court, a trial court official said.

JAN 26, 2024
McLellan's lawyers said they're missing some discovery of evidence, including cell phone data that was stored by the FBI.

An Athens hearing for McLellan will take place in April. That is an evidentiary hearing to determine whether the defendant is intellectually disabled.
 
JUN 6, 2024
[...]

Michael McLellan appeared in court Thursday for a status hearing. He was set to be tried on July 22.

However, one of the lawyers filed a motion asking if she could withdraw because she has another job.

Robeson County District Attorney Matthew School opposed the motion saying it's been nearly six years since Hania Aguilar's death.

Scott told the judge Hania's mother and family have patiently waited in all that time and are ready for McLellan to be tried.

The judge granted the lawyer's request to withdraw. However, he urged the defense to move forward, with haste, to get a second lawyer to represent McLellan.

[...]
 
JUL 11, 2024
Michael McLellan, who allegedly kidnapping Hania Aguilar from a yard in the Rosewood Mobile Home Park in the Lumberton area, was recently provided a new attorney to replace one who in June asked to withdraw from the case because of a change in jobs, Robeson County District Attorney Matt Scott said.

The name of the new attorney was not immediately available. McLellan’s trial had been scheduled for July 22. Scott said a new date has not been set.
 
NOV 7, 2024
In June, one of McLellan's lawyers filed a motion asking if she could withdraw because she has another job.

The judge granted the lawyer's request to withdraw. However, he urged the defense to move forward, with haste, to get a second lawyer to represent McLellan.

At this time, it's not clear if McLellan has been appointed a second lawyer.

ABC 15 has reached out to the Robeson County District Attorney's Office to learn of any new developments in McLellan's case.
 

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