GUILTY NV - Julia Woodward, 21, murdered, Washoe County, 1979 *Arrest in 2019*

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Niner said:
Thanks a bunch Suglo! :)
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@Niner I just checked again and the hearing is still on calendar for 2/26/2020 at 9:00 am. I did see that the motion to set trial was heard on 1/30/2020 and was vacated so there is no trial date set. The hearing this week is a basic status hearing.
 
Wednesday, February 26th:
*Status Hearing (@ am PT) – NV – Julia Woodward (21) (last seen Feb. 1, 1979 @ SF airport, found Mar. 25, 1979 near Eagle Canyon in Hungry Valley (15 miles north of Reno) - *Charles Gary Sullivan (77/33 @ time of crime) indicted (8/25/19), arrested (8/28/19 in Yavapai County, AZ), extradited (11/15/19 to Reno), charged (11/15/19) & arraigned (11/19/19) with open murder. Plead not guilty. Held without bond.
DNA Match. Under investigation in multiple homicides involving vulnerable young women. Authorities believe that Sullivan may have also killed two other women in the Reno/Tahoe area in the late 1970s: 17-year-old Jeannie Smith and 23-year-old Linda Taylor, according to court documents. Sullivan has not been charged in those cases, and Attorney General Aaron Ford, whose office is prosecuting the case, said they are focusing on the Woodward case.
11/19/19 Update: Plead not guilty. Sullivan was remanded to Washoe County Jail pending his next appearance in court, scheduled for 1/30/20. 1/21/20: Writ of Habeas Corpus.
1/30/20 Update: Defense attorney David Houston is attacking both the DNA evidence & use of the California case before the County grand jury & is asking for the charges to be dismissed. Houston told the court no evidence ties his client to Woodward other than seminal DNA found on her pants & that indicates only that he had sex with her, not that he murdered her. Other DNA he said indicated the presence of other persons. Deputy Attorney General Michael Kovacs disputed that argument citing the number of similarities between the crimes showing--he argued--a common MO and Sullivan's propensity for sexual violence. And he said the presence of other person's DNA was likely caused by contamination during the autopsy--something he said which should be expected in a case dating back before DNA testing was even developed. Judge Connie Steinheimer said she will rule on the matter no later than the next scheduled status hearing in the case. That's set for Feb. 26th. If she rejects Houston's motion, a trial date could be set at that time.
 
Hey @Suglo - from the article above (post #43):

A key evidentiary hearing will take place on June 15, 2020 to determine what evidence will be allowed in trial. Specifically, the unsolved murders of Jeannie Smith and Linda Taylor for which Sullivan is suspected, but not charged. Also, a 2007 case out of Nevada County in which Sullivan was accused of kidnapping a young hitchhiker.

Is this the next hearing - 6/15 on the court site? TIA! :)
 
Niner said:
Hey @Suglo - from the article above (post #43):

A key evidentiary hearing will take place on June 15, 2020 to determine what evidence will be allowed in trial. Specifically, the unsolved murders of Jeannie Smith and Linda Taylor for which Sullivan is suspected, but not charged. Also, a 2007 case out of Nevada County in which Sullivan was accused of kidnapping a young hitchhiker.

Is this the next hearing - 6/15 on the court site? TIA! :)
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@Niner There is a status hearing first on 5/4/2020 at 10:00 am. The other two dates are also on there. Pretrial motions hearing on 6/15/2020 at 10:00 am and Jury Trial on 1/19/2021 at 10:00 am.
 
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Suglo!

Just checked my notes - I see you have 1/19/21 as jury trial starts, but the article says 1/25. So I'm thinking.... o_O Jury selection will start on 1/19, actually trial on 1/25 - yes? :)
 
Niner said:
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Suglo!

Just checked my notes - I see you have 1/19/21 as jury trial starts, but the article says 1/25. So I'm thinking.... o_O Jury selection will start on 1/19, actually trial on 1/25 - yes? :)
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@Niner Interesting. I went back in just now and it has both 1/19/2021 and 1/25/2021 as “Jury Trial.” Last night they only had the 1/19/2021 date on there. It could be that the first one is to pick a jury but I have never seen two separate non-sequential dates on the docket for Jury Trial. Will have to see what it says after the status hearing in May.
 
Suglo said:
@Niner Interesting. I went back in just now and it has both 1/19/2021 and 1/25/2021 as “Jury Trial.” Last night they only had the 1/19/2021 date on there. It could be that the first one is to pick a jury but I have never seen two separate non-sequential dates on the docket for Jury Trial. Will have to see what it says after the status hearing in May.
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I've seen that before. 2 entries that say "Jury Trial" and it always turns out the first date is for jury selection. So I'll put that in my notes & will see what comes up after you check again! :)
 
April 12 2020 rbbm
Cold case murder suspect loses bid for release, set for trial in Reno
'''A 73-year-old Arizona man linked to a 1979 homicide thanks to a Nevada County criminal case has lost a bid to have his indictment tossed and will go to trial next year in Reno.

Charles Gary Sullivan has pleaded not guilty to one count of murder with the use of a deadly weapon in the death of Julia Woodward, 21, whose body was found in a remote area about 15 miles north of Reno. Woodward’s eyes had been sealed shut with Band-Aids, her legs were zip-tied and a cloth had been used as a gag, news reports stated.''

''Sullivan’s attorney, David Houston, filed a petition to have his indictment dismissed, and a hearing was conducted by Second Judicial District Court Judge Connie Steinheimer in January. Steinheimer on Wednesday issued a ruling denying Sullivan’s petition, finding there was sufficient evidence for the grand jury to find probable cause on the charges, and finding no error warranting a dismissal of the indictment.

Steinheimer previously set a trial date of Jan. 25, 2021, with a time estimate of four weeks. Sullivan’s attorney has filed a motion to withdraw as counsel, but an evidentiary hearing remains scheduled for June 15.''
 
Thanks for that info @dotr ! Will add that to my notes.

BUT! The next hearing I have for him is on 5/4 - maybe @Suglo can look that up - when you have time :) - and I do have 6/15 in my notes.
 
Niner said:
Thanks for that info @dotr ! Will add that to my notes.

BUT! The next hearing I have for him is on 5/4 - maybe @Suglo can look that up - when you have time :) - and I do have 6/15 in my notes.
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@Niner There is still a status hearing on the docket on 5/4/2020 at 10:00 am. It says the 6/15/2020 hearing is for pretrial motions not an evidentiary hearing.
 
Hey @Suglo - hope all is going well with you & you are staying healthy! All good here! :)

Was wondering IF that status hearing on 5/4 is still a "go" - TIA!
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Niner said:
Hey @Suglo - hope all is going well with you & you are staying healthy! All good here! :)

Was wondering IF that status hearing on 5/4 is still a "go" - TIA!
animated-smileys-waving-003.gif
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@Niner The status hearing on 5/4 has been vacated. There is a Hearing on 5/6 at 2:00 pm. Doesn’t explain what type of hearing it is. The next docket item after that is the pretrial motion hearing on 6/15 at 10:00 am.
 
I'm going to post this until I hear from @Suglo . At least I can shorten this up a bit. :)

Wednesday, May 6th:
*Status Hearing (@ 2pm PT) – NV – Julia Woodward (21) (last seen Feb. 1, 1979 @ SF airport, found Mar. 25, 1979 near Eagle Canyon in Hungry Valley (15 miles north of Reno) - *Charles Gary Sullivan (77/33 @ time of crime) indicted (8/25/19), arrested (8/28/19 in Yavapai County, AZ), extradited (11/15/19 to Reno), charged (11/15/19) & arraigned (11/19/19) with open murder. Plead not guilty. Held without bond.
DNA Match. Under investigation in multiple homicides involving vulnerable young women. Authorities believe that Sullivan may have also killed two other women in the Reno/Tahoe area in the late 1970s: 17-year-old Jeannie Smith and 23-year-old Linda Taylor, according to court documents. Sullivan has not been charged in those cases, and Attorney General Aaron Ford, whose office is prosecuting the case, said they are focusing on the Woodward case.
Trial set to begin on 1/25/21 with jury selection starting on 1/19/21 @ 10am with trial started on 1/25/21. (Trial will last about 4 weeks).
Court info from 11/19/19 thru 1/30/20 reference post #42 here:
NV - Julia Woodward, 21, murdered, Washoe County, 1979 *Arrest in 2019*
2/26/20 Update: A key evidentiary hearing will take place on 6/15/20 to determine what evidence will be allowed in trial. Specifically, the unsolved murders of Jeannie Smith & Linda Taylor for which Sullivan is suspected, but not charged. Also, a 2007 case out of Nevada County in which Sullivan was accused of kidnapping a young hitchhiker. His trial has been set for January 25, 2021 and is expected to last about four weeks. Next Status hearing on 5/4, pretrial motion on 6/15, jury selection on 1/19/21 & trial is scheduled to start on 1/25/21.
4/8/20 Update: Sullivan’s attorney, David Houston, filed a petition to have his indictment dismissed, and a hearing was conducted by Second Judicial District Court Judge Connie Steinheimer in January. Steinheimer on Wednesday issued a ruling denying Sullivan’s petition, finding there was sufficient evidence for the grand jury to find probable cause on the charges, and finding no error warranting a dismissal of the indictment. Steinheimer previously set a trial date of Jan. 25, 2021, with a time estimate of four weeks. Sullivan’s attorney has filed a motion to withdraw as counsel, and motion hearing is scheduled for June 15.
5/1/20 Update: Status hearing on 5/4 has been vacated. Next hearing on 5/6 @ 2pm & then Motions hearing on 6/15.
 
Niner said:
I'm going to post this until I hear from @Suglo . At least I can shorten this up a bit. :)

Wednesday, May 6th:
*Status Hearing (@ 2pm PT) – NV – Julia Woodward (21) (last seen Feb. 1, 1979 @ SF airport, found Mar. 25, 1979 near Eagle Canyon in Hungry Valley (15 miles north of Reno) - *Charles Gary Sullivan (77/33 @ time of crime) indicted (8/25/19), arrested (8/28/19 in Yavapai County, AZ), extradited (11/15/19 to Reno), charged (11/15/19) & arraigned (11/19/19) with open murder. Plead not guilty. Held without bond.
DNA Match. Under investigation in multiple homicides involving vulnerable young women. Authorities believe that Sullivan may have also killed two other women in the Reno/Tahoe area in the late 1970s: 17-year-old Jeannie Smith and 23-year-old Linda Taylor, according to court documents. Sullivan has not been charged in those cases, and Attorney General Aaron Ford, whose office is prosecuting the case, said they are focusing on the Woodward case.
Trial set to begin on 1/25/21 with jury selection starting on 1/19/21 @ 10am with trial started on 1/25/21. (Trial will last about 4 weeks).
Court info from 11/19/19 thru 1/30/20 reference post #42 here:
NV - Julia Woodward, 21, murdered, Washoe County, 1979 *Arrest in 2019*
2/26/20 Update: A key evidentiary hearing will take place on 6/15/20 to determine what evidence will be allowed in trial. Specifically, the unsolved murders of Jeannie Smith & Linda Taylor for which Sullivan is suspected, but not charged. Also, a 2007 case out of Nevada County in which Sullivan was accused of kidnapping a young hitchhiker. His trial has been set for January 25, 2021 and is expected to last about four weeks. Next Status hearing on 5/4, pretrial motion on 6/15, jury selection on 1/19/21 & trial is scheduled to start on 1/25/21.
4/8/20 Update: Sullivan’s attorney, David Houston, filed a petition to have his indictment dismissed, and a hearing was conducted by Second Judicial District Court Judge Connie Steinheimer in January. Steinheimer on Wednesday issued a ruling denying Sullivan’s petition, finding there was sufficient evidence for the grand jury to find probable cause on the charges, and finding no error warranting a dismissal of the indictment. Steinheimer previously set a trial date of Jan. 25, 2021, with a time estimate of four weeks. Sullivan’s attorney has filed a motion to withdraw as counsel, and motion hearing is scheduled for June 15.
5/1/20 Update: Status hearing on 5/4 has been vacated. Next hearing on 5/6 @ 2pm & then Motions hearing on 6/15.
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@Niner I just looked at the Judge’s calendar and they are having the hearing right now (It’s 2:13 pm there and here). I’ll check back tomorrow morning to see if they added another one before the 6/15 motion hearing.

ETA: Link https://www.washoecourts.com/Query/CaseInformation/CR19-1607

By the way it looks like his attorneys filed a motion to withdraw last week and they also made a report of indigency on 5/1 and are going to be hearing this motion today.
 
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@Niner There is another status hearing on 5/22/2020 at 10:00 am. Nothing new on the docket about the outcome of the attorneys’ motion to withdraw or the report of indigency for the defendant. Will check back on the 22nd for you.
 
Thank you (again!) @Suglo !

Here's some fresh baked cookies to munch on!
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edited to add - next time you are in the court site - can you see if there is a birth date for him? TIA!
 
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Niner said:
Thank you (again!) @Suglo !

Here's some fresh baked cookies to munch on!
animated-smileys-housekeeping-007.gif



edited to add - next time you are in the court site - can you see if there is a birth date for him? TIA!
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@Niner Thanks for the cookies :D I checked but they only have his name and the names of the prosecuting and defending attorneys. No DOB for him.
 
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