EVERETT — Lawyers for a man convicted in the 2002 killing of an 18-year-old woman are seeking a mistrial in the new trial proceedings, claiming their client’s rights have been violated.
The Daily Herald of Everett reports that John Alan Whitaker’s lawyers argued that their client’s constitutional rights had been violated during questioning of one of the final witnesses in the three-week trial.
The judge on Friday declined to rule on the defense’s motion for a mistrial until after she hear closing arguments.
The motion comes after prosecutors on Thursday asked if Whitaker had invoked his right to silence when being questioned by police, which defense attorneys say unfairly prejudiced jurors.
Whitaker was convicted of killing Rachel Burkheimer in 2002, but that conviction was overturned in 2013, granting him a new trial.
