Murder trial delayed, may resume today - Military News | News From Afghanistan, Iraq And Around The World - Military Times

Murder trial delayed, may resume today

BOLLING AIR FORCE BASE, Washington, D.C. — Opening statements in Airman Calvin Hill’s murder trial were stalled Wednesday by an uncooperative witness.

Hill is accused of killing Airman 1st Class Ashley Turner in 2005 at Naval Air Station Keflavik, Iceland.

Vannee Youbanphout, Hill’s girlfriend at the time of the alleged killing, is unwilling to travel to the U.S., prosecutors said. The judge, Col. William Burd, said it would be “absurd” to move the trial to Iceland to accommodate the witness.

Around noon, prosecutors were negotiating with Icelandic authorities to work out an agreement. Opening statements may still begin today at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington, D.C.

The trial was originally scheduled to begin April 16, but jury selection took longer than expected, according to officials.

Hill, 21, is accused of killing Turner in a Keflavik dormitory. He is charged with premeditated murder, false statements, being absent without leave, larceny and obstruction of justice.

Prosecutors allege he stole about $2,800 from Turner, got caught, lied about the thefts to investigators and murdered Turner to silence her court-martial testimony. Hill, who is not required to plea until arraigned, asserted his innocence through his defense team at a pretrial Article 32 hearing.

Both airmen were assigned to the 56th Rescue Squadron, and Keflavik was their first deployment. Turner is buried in Frederick, Md., near where her mother and father live. Hill, raised in Warren, Ohio, has been held at Quantico Marine Corps Base, Va.

If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

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Airman on trial for murder