28 days ago
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Curtis Vance, the man charged with killing KATV anchor Anne Pressly, will go on trial Nov. 2.
Judge Chris Piazza's decision was made despite efforts by defense attorneys to have the trial delayed once again. The decision was made in another pretrial hearing Friday.
Piazza and attorneys addressed several topics at the hearing. However, the concern that came up repeatedly was the defense attorneys' plea for a continuance. They argued they need more time to have Vance evaluated for the possibility he's mentally disabled.
Walking into the courtroom Friday morning, Vance's statements were out of step with his attorneys' statements.
"I think I'm pretty smart; man what y'all think," asks Vance.
His declaration of intelligence is in contradiction to defense attorneys' claims that Vance shows signs of being mentally retarded, and therefore by state law not eligible for the death penalty.
The pre-trail hearing dealt with five motions filed this week, the majority from the defense. This included a request to give them more time to try to disprove state psychiatrist Dr. Stacy McBain's assessment Vance is fit to stand trial.
The defense says McBain didn't follow procedure when making her decision, because she only factored in her interview with Vance and his school records, rather than digging for more information from Vance's adolescence. McBain says she didn't need to because she had no indication he's mentally disabled.
Another issue was Vance's repeated statements to Little Rock police, regarding the murder of Pressly. The defense said portions of it are irrelevant especially when Vance voluntarily spoke of his past involvement in other crimes.
However, the state argued Vance's statements should be heard in their entirety to show how he told lie after lie.
Vance says he was frustrated by Judge Piazza's rulings, which for the most part sided with the state.
"Because the judge is ruling on false statements, no proof, but that's how it is I guess," says Vance.
The above is part of the reason Vance and his family say he can't have a fair trial in The Natural State.
While McBain said in her professional opinion Vance isn't mentally retarded, she did diagnose him with anti-social personality disorder because of his reported inability to keep a job and get along with people.
Since the continuance was denied, Vance's capital murder trial will begin in just over a week on Nov. 2.
