(WFMJ-TV) Accused killer Claudia Hoerig rejects a plea deal offered by the prosecution.
Hoerig was back in a Trumbull County courtroom for an
unexpected pretrial hearing in her upcoming aggravated murder trial.
Hoerig is accused of shooting and killing her husband -- Air
Force Major Karl Hoerig back in 2007 at their Newton Falls Home and then
fleeing to her native country of Brazil for nearly eleven years.
In a hearing that lasted about five minutes, Claudia Hoerig
agreed to sign a speedy trial waiver that allows the September 17th trial date
to be pushed back until January 14th of 2019.
One reason the additional time is needed to prepare for the
trial is that one of Hoerig's public defenders retired and was replaced by
another attorney from Columbus who needs time to get up to speed on the case.
Claudia Hoerig was also given an opportunity before the
hearing to avoid going on trial for murder, but her attorney says she rejected
a plea deal by the prosecution.
21 News Legal Consultant Matt Mangino says it's not unusual
for Hoerig to be offered a plea deal since this is not a death penalty case.
"A conviction could certainly mean life in prison, so
is there some agreement that can be reached between prosecutors and her
attorneys that would maybe offer her some hope of release down the road,"
Attorney Mangino said.
Because there is a gag order in the case, the details of the
plea offer were not made public.
21 News noticed that Chief Prosecutor Dennis Watkins asked
the victim's family to step out of the courtroom for a private discussion
shortly before court began. That meeting may have been to make sure the
family was okay with a plea agreement being offered in the case.
"A trial is a painful process for a victim's family to
sit there and listen to graphic details of how their loved one was taken from
them," Attorney Mangino said.
However, it appears for now that Hoerig wants to roll the
dice with a jury trial.
Attorney Mangino said other plea offers can be made all the
way up to and even during trial, "Often times pleas can be drawn up and
accepted on the courthouse steps as you're about to pick a jury, or in the
midst of picking a jury."
A final pretrial is set for December 13th.
A final pretrial is set for December 13th.
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