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W. Va. Trial Delayed After Suspect Asks for Test of Accusers’ DNA
By: Associated Press
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HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) – The murder trial of a West Virginia man has been delayed after he requested his accusers’ DNA be compared to DNA found at the scene of the crime.
42-year-old Ronald Amory Witherel’s trial set to start Tuesday has been rescheduled for February. Witherel is accused of killing David Ralph in 2017.
Ralph’s girlfriend told police she awoke to a noise and saw her boyfriend’s employee, Witherel, inside the couple’s shared home. She said he then left.
Witherel’s girlfriend told police Witherel and Ralph had been driven to Ralph’s home earlier that night by two other men, the same ones who later accused Witherel of murder.
Witherel also is charged with first-degree robbery in a separate case. A judge hasn’t said if the charges warrant separate trials.