BENTONVILLE -- A circuit judge will decide in a few weeks whether to delay the third jury trial for a Bella Vista man accused of killing his 6-year-old son.
Mauricio Alejandro Torres, 52, is charged with capital murder and battery. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
Jury selection is scheduled to begin Jan. 31, but a defense motion is requesting the trial be rescheduled.
Torres was tried, convicted and sentenced to death in 2016 for his son's murder, but the state Supreme Court overturned the conviction in 2019 and ordered Torres be given a new trial. The high court ruled prosecutors didn't prove their case for the death penalty.
A second jury found Torres guilty of the murder and battery charges. The proceedings ended during the sentencing phase March 5, 2020, when a witness jumped from the jury box and attempted to attack Torres. A Benton County deputy and a bailiff stopped the witness from reaching Torres.
Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren declared a mistrial and ruled Torres should have another trial.
The Arkansas Attorney general's office appealed Karren's decision, but the Arkansas Supreme Court agreed with Karren.
Jeff Rosenzweig, one of Torres' attorneys, filed the motion requesting Karren reschedule the third trial.
Rosenzweig states in the motion the delay is needed because the defense is still waiting on transcripts of witness testimony from Torres' second trial.
Benton County Prosecuting Attorney Nathan Smith didn't object to delaying the trial.
He said in his response the transcripts of the second trial are needed by the prosecution and defense.
A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Jan. 14.
Maurice Isaiah Torres died March 30, 2015, at a Bella Vista medical clinic, according to court documents. Torres is accused of shoving a stick in his son's rectum, causing an infection that led to the boy's death. Prosecutors presented evidence showing the boy was repeatedly abused.
Rosenzweig and Smith are also seeking to have the judge clarify masking procedures for the trial.
Karren has held several trials during the covid-19 pandemic.
All participants in the courtroom are masked except the witnesses while they testify. Masked jurors sit spread out in the courtroom instead of in the jury box.
Rosenzweig's motion says prospective jurors should be unmasked during jury selection and witnesses also should be unmasked. Smith agreed in his filing that prospective jurors and witnesses should be unmasked.
Torres is being held without bail in the Benton County Jail.