This crime occurred on March 8th, 2021. A suspect was arrested five weeks later.
At the time of the murders, I lived very close by. Every few months, I check the court website to see what progress has been made in the case. surprisingly, this case has yet to go to trial. Court transcripts includes 45 entries of type Pre-preliminary hearing and preliminary hearing, with only three results; Held, Continue party's motion, and Cancelled-Vacated. Based on research, the cancellation of the preliminary hearing typically involves the defendant waiving their rights to a speedy trial. One of the most cited reasons as to why the defendant would waive these rights is based on an attempt by the defense to reduce the publicity surrounding the case. I'd argue that there has never been publicity for this case beyond the local level. This has been done 11 times to date. Though the defendant will likely be tried in the same county as the crime, I guarantee you could find enough jurors who have never heard of the case. Geographically, it's literally the largest county in the US and the 14th largest in terms of population. The other major reason given for waiving rights to a speedy trail is to allow the defense time to prepare for trial. It's been nearly four years since the arraignment.
I am curious if there are any laws regarding the maximum number of times a defendant can waive their rights to a speedy trial. I'm also wondering what the taxpayer-funded costs associated with convening court 45 times with no known progress to show for it.
All of this said, the biggest travesty, outside of the murders themselves, is the additional misery heaped on family and friends awaiting justice.
Edited to include a link to a short summary of the crime: Murder of Jia Jia and 8 year old daughter.
At the time of the murders, I lived very close by. Every few months, I check the court website to see what progress has been made in the case. surprisingly, this case has yet to go to trial. Court transcripts includes 45 entries of type Pre-preliminary hearing and preliminary hearing, with only three results; Held, Continue party's motion, and Cancelled-Vacated. Based on research, the cancellation of the preliminary hearing typically involves the defendant waiving their rights to a speedy trial. One of the most cited reasons as to why the defendant would waive these rights is based on an attempt by the defense to reduce the publicity surrounding the case. I'd argue that there has never been publicity for this case beyond the local level. This has been done 11 times to date. Though the defendant will likely be tried in the same county as the crime, I guarantee you could find enough jurors who have never heard of the case. Geographically, it's literally the largest county in the US and the 14th largest in terms of population. The other major reason given for waiving rights to a speedy trail is to allow the defense time to prepare for trial. It's been nearly four years since the arraignment.
I am curious if there are any laws regarding the maximum number of times a defendant can waive their rights to a speedy trial. I'm also wondering what the taxpayer-funded costs associated with convening court 45 times with no known progress to show for it.
All of this said, the biggest travesty, outside of the murders themselves, is the additional misery heaped on family and friends awaiting justice.
Edited to include a link to a short summary of the crime: Murder of Jia Jia and 8 year old daughter.
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