TROY, N.Y. (AP) - An upstate New York judge declared a mistrial in a quadruple-murder trial Wednesday amid concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.
James White, 40, will remain in county jail until he is retried on charges in connection to the brutal stabbing of four adults, including two children, in December 2017, the Times Union reported.
White’s case has been dubbed one of the county’s most horrific and high-profile cases in years.
He is accused of bounding and gagging the victims in a Lansingburgh home before stabbing them in their necks with a large knife.
The case’s outcome is a result of the state’s court system delay as administrators weigh the impact of the virus. Deliberations were postponed Monday and again Tuesday after one of the jurors got sick. At least two other jurors have become reluctant to come to court over the fear they will contract the virus.
“This is something that is completely unprecedented, not just here but worldwide,” White’s attorney, Kurt Haas, told reporters after the trial’s abrupt ending.
Haas said White was happy with the judge’s decision and will prepare for the new trial.
White will need to be retried on allegations that he murdered Brandi Mells, 22, Shanta Myers, 36, and Myers’ two children: Jeremiah, 11, and 5-year-old Shanise.
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