FAYETTEVILLE -- A capital murder trial for a Springdale man again has been reset.
The trial for Juan Pablo Perez-Lopez, 29, was scheduled to begin Wednesday in Washington County Circuit Court. The case was reset to July 24.
Perez-Lopez told police he stabbed Jesus Cecilio Villalobos, a Springdale auto mechanic, about 20 times Feb. 13, 2013.
Motorists called Springdale police about two men fighting on Huntsville Avenue and said one of them had a knife and was riding away on a bicycle. Police found Perez-Lopez on a bicycle with a knife and bloody hands, then found Villalobos, 48, in a parking lot with multiple stab wounds to his chest and his throat cut, according to a search warrant affidavit filed in the case.
Perez-Lopez's trial is being delayed because a second mental evaluation to determine if he's fit to stand trial hasn't been completed. An earlier examination at the Arkansas State Hospital found Perez-Lopez fit to proceed.
Perez-Lopez pleaded not guilty. He's in the Washington County jail without bond.
Perez-Lopez faces either life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty if convicted. Prosecutors haven't said whether they will seek the death penalty.
Circuit Judge Mark Lindsay will hear the case.
The case has been delayed numerous times to allow for evidence to be processed, a change in judges and the mental evaluations.
Perez-Lopez also may face a second-degree battery charge related to a scuffle with jailers June 10. He has an arraignment date of July 13, but prosecutors haven't yet filed formal charges in connection with that incident.
NW News on 06/18/2015