The trial of a Briton accused of murdering his American wife and baby has been postponed until June - the fourth time it has been delayed.
Neil Entwistle, originally from Worksop, in Nottinghamshire, is accused of shooting 27-year-old wife Rachel and their nine-month-old daughter Lillian Rose at their home in Hopkinton, Massachusetts on January 20, 2006.
His trial was due to begin in March. But now it has been delayed again to allow his lawyer to recover from surgery.
The trial was originally to begin in April 2007 but has been fraught with a series of setbacks.
Former IT worker Entwistle, 29, denies two counts of murder and related gun charges. He told police that he panicked and fled the US for his parents' house in Worksop after finding the bodies.
He was arrested on February 9, 2006, in London, and extradited to America.
If convicted of the two counts of murder he will be jailed for life without the chance of parole.
He was refused bail. Prosecutors say he was despondent over mounting debts and may have planned to commit suicide after killing his wife and daughter. Entwistle's laywer Elliot Weinstein argued that the case couldn't begin in March because co-counsel, Stephanie Page, recently underwent "major surgery".
Middlesex Superior Court Judge Diane Kottmyer agreed to postpone the trial, due to begin on March 17, until June because one of Entwistle's lawyers had surgery in December and is off work until the end of February.
The trial is now tentatively scheduled to begin on June 2.
By Gavin Wilson, Jan 28 2008 © Copyright 2008 - Showbiz Spy
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