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Venue change granted in Malinovskaya case
Meredith Aska McBride
A Delaware Superior Court judge has granted a change-of-venue request from lawyers for Wharton undergraduate Irina Malinovskaya should she be tried a fourth time.
Malinovskaya, accused of killing her ex-boyfriend's then-girlfriend in December 2004, has been tried three times for murder, each time resulting in a hung jury.
If prosecutors pursue a fourth trial in the case - which has until now been heard at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington, Del. - it will take place in either Dover, Del. or Georgetown, Del.
Defense attorneys Eugene Mauer and Joe Hurley, who could not be reached for comment, cited the amount of publicity surrounding the case as the reason for a venue switch, as the media coverage would make it difficult to find an unbiased jury in Wilmington - sentiments shared by prosecutors.
"We had actually joined with the motion because we also had concerns about pre-trial publicity," prosecutor Paul Wallace said.
The state is still waiting for the defense to file yet unspecified motions before deciding whether to try Malinovskaya again. The Wilmington News Journal reported last week that the defense was planning to file motions to have the case dismissed, but Wallace would not comment on the matter.
Legal experts have said a fourth trial would be an unusual move, but not entirely surprising.
A status conference is scheduled for later this month, and prosecutors are expected to announce their decision soon thereafter.
Malinovskaya, accused of killing her ex-boyfriend's then-girlfriend in December 2004, has been tried three times for murder, each time resulting in a hung jury.
If prosecutors pursue a fourth trial in the case - which has until now been heard at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington, Del. - it will take place in either Dover, Del. or Georgetown, Del.
Defense attorneys Eugene Mauer and Joe Hurley, who could not be reached for comment, cited the amount of publicity surrounding the case as the reason for a venue switch, as the media coverage would make it difficult to find an unbiased jury in Wilmington - sentiments shared by prosecutors.
"We had actually joined with the motion because we also had concerns about pre-trial publicity," prosecutor Paul Wallace said.
The state is still waiting for the defense to file yet unspecified motions before deciding whether to try Malinovskaya again. The Wilmington News Journal reported last week that the defense was planning to file motions to have the case dismissed, but Wallace would not comment on the matter.
Legal experts have said a fourth trial would be an unusual move, but not entirely surprising.
A status conference is scheduled for later this month, and prosecutors are expected to announce their decision soon thereafter.
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