TEXAS
The Monitor
NAXIELY LOPEZ-PUENTE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — The judge presiding over the case of a former priest accused of murdering a McAllen beauty queen will wait until next week before ruling on a change of venue petition by the defense — but his ruling could be to delay the decision even further.
State District Judge Luis Singleterry heard arguments Wednesday from both the defense and prosecution regarding the media attention surrounding the Irene Garza case.
The defense for John Feit said the case was too important to the community and had even swayed the last Hidalgo County district attorney election. The emotion surrounding the case makes it difficult for jurors to be impartial, the defense argued.
“That’s just how our brains work,” expert witness Bryan Edelman told the court Wednesday.
Edelman, co-founder and jury consultant at Trial Innovations, travels across the country conducting pre-trial research for various cases, including the 2012 movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado.
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