PORT ANGELES — A man accused of raping and killing a 15-year-old girl will continue his wait for a trial in Clallam County jail.
The two-week trial of Robert Gene Covarrubias, 25, is scheduled to start Jan. 30.
The first-degree murder trial was scheduled to begin Jan. 9, but pre-trial motions and the search for witnesses have delayed the process, said Covarrubias” attorney, public defender Ralph Anderson.
Covarrubias is accused of sexually assaulting and strangling Melissa Carter, who left a Christmas Eve 2004 party and was not seen again.
Carter’s body was found in a brushy hollow along the downtown Waterfront Trail in Port Angeles on Dec. 26, 2004.
Covarrubias was charged in connection with Carter’s death Feb. 16, 2005.
Prosecutors are not pursuing the death penalty because premeditation in the killing of Carter cannot be proven.
Covarrubias is being held on $1 million bail in the Clallam County jail.
Because of threats against his life, he is being held alone in a cell.