Bennett murder retrial set for next week

EPHRATA — A trial for an Ephrata man who is accused of murdering his landlord was reset for next week. A previous trial in the case ended in a judge declaring a mistrial due to a hung jury.

Chad Bennett, 27, of Ephrata, is charged with first-degree murder in Grant County Superior Court in connection with the murder of his landlord, Lucille Moore, 82, of Ephrata, in September 2014. A previous trial in the case ended in Grant County Superior Court Judge John Knodell declaring a mistrial after a jury could not reach a unanimous decision after four days of deliberations.

On Monday, the prosecution and defense argued for different dates to retry the case. Grant County Prosecutor Garth Dano petitioned the court to set the trial for early January, with the only problem being that the date would have gone past Bennett’s right to have a speedy trial within 60 days of the mistrial declaration. Bennett’s attorney, David Bustamante, told the court his client was not willing to waive his right to a speedy trial, which would have allowed the trial to be set out past 60 days.

Bustamante asked for either a Nov. 9 or No. 16 trial, stating he was ready to retry the case immediately. Dano told Knodell having a November trial would make it difficult for the prosecution to coordinate with the witnesses the state plans to call to testify. In addition, the prosecutor noted Ephrata Police Department Detective Todd Huffman, who was the lead investigator in the case, will be going on vacation in November, which Dano said would put the prosecution at a disadvantage because of Huffman’s role in investigating the case.

Knodell sided with the defense and set the trial for Nov. 9. The judge noted, however, that there is a possibility the case will not be heard on that date, as there are currently other matters in front of the Bennett case on the superior court’s trial run.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.