Why the Delacruz Murder Trial May Be Delayed

SAN ANGELO, TX -- Isidro Delacruz, 26, was back in the Tom Green County Courthouse this morning for a scheduled pre-trial hearing. 

Delacruz's court-appointed attorney Jack Stoffrgen asked the court for another motion for continence in the capital murder trial. Delacruz is accused of murdering 5-year-old Niaya Villegas from 2014.

The basis for the motion is new evidence in the case with 30 hours of San Angelo Police dash cam footage and documents from Delacruz's time in the Tom Green County Jail.

The State turned over the new documents to the defense counsel immediately after receiving it from the jail on Wednesday evening. 

With the new camera footage and jail notes being voluminous new evidence for the defense to study in order to honed the defense strategy, Stoffrgen decided to file the motion for continuance, or delay.

Judge Woodward asked the State how they would respond to the defense using the newly found evidence in their argument. 

District Attorney Allison Palmer said, "The State will not offer any of [the new] information on the punishment or the guilt/innocence portion of the trial."  She said she understands the defense will want to review all of the information, however, the State would not support delaying the jury trial any longer. 

There was some discussion of how the delay in the trial would affect the upcoming jury selection starting Monday morning at the McNease convention center where 350 potential jurors have been ordered to show in person. 

The defense filed the supplemental motion for continuance on Friday morning.

Judge Woodward said the motion would be an easy ruling to make in a normal case, however, the material involved in a capital murder trial allows for more broad discovery by the defense. 

Woodward declared he would review the motion in detail and be ready to make a ruling Friday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. 

Update 3 p.m.

Woodward delayed the trial until January 2018. Details.