Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez is about to go to court docket along with his tried homicide trial on Sept. 9. in Santa Clara County, Calif.
The trial date was set on Wednesday by Choose Elizabeth Peterson, with Velasquez showing in court docket alongside his legal professional Renee Hessling.
On the newest listening to, Hessling requested one other continuance, however prosecutor Aaron French, who represented the District Lawyer’s workplace, argued in opposition to one other delay, complaining that the trial setting had already been pushed again a number of instances. A continuance for the trial setting was granted back in February attributable to subpoena requests that the protection was nonetheless ready to obtain, together with information from the UFC.
Hessling acknowledged on Wednesday that the subpoena proof acquired was nonetheless incomplete and she or he wanted extra time earlier than a trial date was set.
In the long run, Peterson sided with the prosecution to set a trial date for September. Velasquez faces a litany of expenses in connection along with his arrest again in March 2022.
Velasquez, 41, was arrested after allegedly occurring a high-speed chase pursuing a automobile containing Harry Goularte, a person accused of sexually abusing his son at a daycare owned by Goularte’s mom. Velasquez allegedly fired a number of rounds from a handgun into the automobile, with Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender, being hit by a bullet however sustaining non-life threatening accidents in consequence.
Goularte, who was launched on bail in opposition to the advice from the prosecution previous to the alleged automobile chase, faces separate expenses, together with one depend of lewd acts with a baby, however his personal trial date nonetheless hasn’t been set.
The subsequent main date within the case for Velasquez comes on June 26 for a trial readiness listening to, with motions required to be filed by Aug. 12 and accomplished by Aug. 26. Witness lists for the prosecution and protection have to be filed no later than Sept. 4, with the trial slated to start out on Sept. 9.
Throughout the earlier listening to in February, French acknowledged that he objected to additional delays in setting a trial date however conversations had been ongoing between the prosecution and the protection over a possible decision that might embrace a plea deal. At this level, no plea deal was reached, so now a trial date has been set for September.
Velasquez faces a large number of expenses together with tried homicide, which carries a minimal 20-year sentence or as much as life in jail if convicted.
Velasquez plead not responsible to all expenses.
