Site Change Possible In Kidnap-Murder Trial

The trial of the man accused of kidnapping and murdering Polly Klaas may be moved to another county because an inordinate number of residents believe he is guilty.

Jury selection will be suspended and hearings may begin as early as Sept. 18 to determine whether Richard Allen Davis’ trial should be moved from Sonoma County, Superior Court Judge Lawrence Antolini said Friday.

“I do not see the court has a lot of options,” he said, noting that most of the prospective jurors interviewed so far have heard reports that Davis confessed to killing the 12-year-old Petaluma girl.

Davis, 41, a parolee, is accused of kidnapping Polly from her bedroom during a slumber party on Oct. 1, 1993, and dumping her body near a highway. The search for her had spanned the globe.