N.H. Home Invasion Trial to Stay Put, Open with Crime Scene Tour
NASHUA, N.H. (CBS/WBZ/AP) A judge overseeing the trial of 18-year-old Steven Spader, the alleged brains behind a disturbing plot to burglarize a random New Hampshire home and kill its occupants, has denied a new request by defense lawyers to change the location.
Lawyers for Spader say some jurors reported changing their routines and starting to lock their doors after the killing.
Spader's trial begins today.
Spader and co-defendant Christopher Gribble allegedly wielded a machete and knife in the pre-dawn attacks on Oct. 4, 2009, slashing 42-year-old Kimberly Cates to death and seriously injuring her 11-year-old daughter, Jaimie, who survived the attack.
The girl told police she feigned death while being beaten.
Two other men who prosecutors say were present in the Cates' home but did not participate in the violence - William Marks and Quinn Glover - are expected to testify.
Jurors will be taken to the Mont Vernon home where the woman was killed.
According to CBS affiliate WBZ, jurors may also hear testimony from Jaimie Cates, now 12, who is on the state's list of potential witnesses. Jaimie told police she survived being slashed from head to toe by pretending to be dead, then calling for help on a cell phone. Her father, David Cates, who also may testify, was on a business trip at the time of the attacks.
Spader is charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder and burglary, and witness tampering, and faces up to life in prison without parole if convicted.
Gribble's trial is scheduled to begin in February.
COMPLETE COVERAGE OF THE DEADLY N.H. HOME INVASION ON CRIMESIDER