Judge Denies Request To Delay Local Trial of Jesse Matthew: Reports

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Image: Jesse Matthew (Fairfax County Police Department)

A Fairfax Circuit Court judge denied a request Friday to delay the trial of a Charlottesville man facing charges in a 2005 case of attempted murder and sexual assault, according to media reports.

Jesse Matthew, the defendant, has also been accused of murdering University of Virginia student Hannah Graham last fall. In the 2005 case, he’s been charged with attacking and sexually assaulting a 26-year-old woman as she walked home from a Fairfax City grocery store.

Matthew’s lawyer said the defense needed more time to examine DNA evidence, as well as to sift through thousands of pages of documents from law enforcement authorities.

But Judge Davd Schell said Friday that the defense had “ample, or at least sufficient time” to prepare for the June 8 trial, radio station WTOP reported. The trial is scheduled to take place at the courthouse in Fairfax City.

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Matthew was indicted in October for attempted capital murder, abduction with attempt to defile, and sexual penetration with an object. He faces three life sentences in the Fairfax City case, and has pleaded not guilty.

Matthew also faces charges in Albemarle County of capital murder, first-degree murder and abduction with intent to defile in the Graham case. She vanished in September after a night out with friends, and her remains were found about five weeks later.