Current:Home > StocksJudge denies change of venue motion in rape trial of man also accused of Memphis teacher’s killing-LoTradeCoin
Judge denies change of venue motion in rape trial of man also accused of Memphis teacher’s killing
View Date:2024-12-23 21:06:48
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee man accused of raping a woman a year before he was charged with kidnapping and killing a schoolteacher will have his fate decided by a Memphis-area jury when he goes to trial in the sexual assault case, a judge has ruled.
Shelby County Judge Lee Coffee on Wednesday denied a change of venue motion filed by Juni Ganguli, the lawyer for Cleotha Abston, news outlets reported. Ganguli argued that Abston could not get a fair trial from Shelby County jurors because of intense media publicity surrounding the 2021 rape and the 2022 killing of Eliza Fletcher.
Abston was not arrested on the rape charges before Eliza Fletcher’s killing because of a long delay in processing the sexual assault kit, authorities have said. Abston has pleaded not guilty in both cases.
Coffee has scheduled an April 8 trial for Abston on the charges of kidnapping and raping a woman in September 2021. Abston is charged with snatching Fletcher from a street near the University of Memphis during her early-morning run on Sept. 2, 2022, and forcing her into an SUV. Her body was found days later near a vacant duplex.
The April rape trial will take place before the trial in the Fletcher case. Prosecutors say they will pursue the death penalty if Abston is convicted of first-degree murder in Fletcher’s death, but no trial date has been set in that case.
Abston, who also has used the name Cleotha Henderson, was charged with the 2021 rape days after he was charged with Fletcher’s killing. After Fletcher’s death, the Legislature passed a law requiring the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to issue a quarterly report on sexual assault kit testing times.
Ganguli had asked the judge to bring in a jury from Nashville for the April rape trial. Coffee said Abston could get a fair trial with a Shelby County jury, citing the 2022 murder trial in the killing of former NBA player Lorenzen Wright as an example of a case that had heavy media attention, yet used a local jury.
The killing of Fletcher, a 34-year-old kindergarten teacher and mother of two, shocked the Memphis community and led to a flood of support for her family. Runners in Memphis and several other cities held an early-morning running event in her honor a week after she was abducted. A second run honoring Fletcher was held last year.
veryGood! (927)
Related
- Darren Criss on why playing a robot in 'Maybe Happy Ending' makes him want to cry
- How Asian American and Pacific Islander athletes in the NFL express their cultural pride
- Kelly Rizzo and Breckin Meyer Spotted on Sweet Stroll After Making Red Carpet Debut as a Couple
- Vanderpump Rules' Raquel Leviss Makes Unexpected Runway Appearance During NYFW
- Federal judge orders Oakland airport to stop using ‘San Francisco’ in name amid lawsuit
- Kevin Harlan, Olivia Harlan Dekker make Super Bowl 58 a family affair with historic broadcast feat
- Larry Hogan running for U.S. Senate seat in Maryland
- Russian Figure Skater Kamila Valieva Blames Her Drug Ban on Grandfather’s Strawberry Dessert
- 32-year-old Maryland woman dies after golf cart accident
- Escaped North Carolina inmate recaptured after leaving work site, kidnapping woman: Police
Ranking
- Beyoncé nominated for album of the year at Grammys — again. Will she finally win?
- Second woman accuses evangelical leader in Kansas City of sexual abuse, church apologizes
- Usher reveals the most 'personal' song on new album: 'Oh, I'm ruined'
- How do you live while your brother is dying? 'Suncoast' is a teen take on hospice
- Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul stirs debate: Is this a legitimate fight?
- Words on mysterious scroll buried by Mount Vesuvius eruption deciphered for first time after 2,000 years
- Proof The Kardashians Season 5 Is Coming Sooner Than You Think
- Jennifer Garner jokingly calls out Mark Ruffalo, says he 'tried to drop out' of '13 Going on 30'
Recommendation
-
Channing Tatum Drops Shirtless Selfie After Zoë Kravitz Breakup
-
Jon Bon Jovi on singing after vocal cord surgery: 'A joy to get back to work'
-
Harris slams ‘politically motivated’ report as Biden to name task force to protect classified docs
-
5 manatees rescued as orphans get released in Florida waters at Blue Spring State Park
-
See Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani's Winning NFL Outing With Kids Zuma and Apollo
-
Meta announces changes for how AI images will display on Facebook, Instagram
-
5.7 earthquake reported on big island of Hawaii
-
Lena Waithe talks working at Blockbuster and crushing on Jennifer Aniston