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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

New judge named one week before Roy Murry murder trial to begin

The trial for triple-murder suspect Roy Murry appears to be on track to begin May 23, even though the case was briefly assigned to four different judges this week.

Murry is accused of killing three members of his estranged wife’s family and then setting their house on fire to cover up his crimes.

Judge Michael Price, who has been assigned Murry’s case since July, recused himself on Wednesday without explanation. Price indicated on the brief form he submitted that the recusal was not requested by an attorney involved in the case.

The case was then assigned to Judge Linda Tompkins, but prosecutor Larry Haskell objected to her selection. The case was given to Judge Annette Plese, but defense attorneys objected to her appointment. The case is now assigned to Judge John Cooney, who held a status conference in his courtroom late Friday afternoon to discuss the logistics of the trial.

Haskell said attorneys routinely file objections against specific judges hearing their cases and they are not required to give a reason. Haskell said he did not give a reason as to why he did not want the case assigned to Tompkins.

“It’s just something that we do,” he said. “It’s nothing personal.”

The trial is expected to last six weeks and attorneys have requested 150 people for the jury selection process.