The much-delayed murder trial of Joseph Morrow, who is accused of killing his wife Donna in their Menlo Park home in December 1991, almost got back on track on Monday, April 17.
Instead, it’s on hold indefinitely while the California Court of Appeal considers a defense request to disqualify the San Mateo County Superior Court judge overseeing the trial, said prosecutor Steve Wagstaffe.
The trial went into recess on March 27 while waiting for an out-of-county judge to rule on whether to disqualify Judge Craig Parsons, on the grounds that his colleague Judge Jack Grandsaert would be called as a witness in a defense motion to dismiss the case.
Judge Parsons dismissed 125 prescreened jurors on April 11 rather than keep them in limbo. Two days later, San Joaquin County Judge Bernard Garber ruled that Judge Parsons need not be disqualified.
Defense attorneys Robert Courshon and Paul DeMeester are contesting that decision, and requested its review by the state Court of Appeal in San Francisco, Mr. Wagstaffe said.
This turn of events will set back the trial a month, at the very least, said Mr. Wagstaffe. The trial was set to resume Monday afternoon, April 17, with jury selection.
“I’m very disappointed for all the people involved, the witnesses and (Donna’s) family, and especially the children,” Mr. Wagstaffe said. “No matter how they feel about their father, they just want this to be over.”
There have been a series of delays in the trial of Mr. Morrow, who allegedly buried his wife’s body in Los Gatos and subsequently fled the country. He was found living in the Philippines in January 2003, and extradited to the United States. Ms. Morrow’s body was discovered in September 2003 at the bottom of a 9-foot grave on property the couple had owned.
