James Burns' murder case to go to trial
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[The majority of a Friday afternoon pretrial hearing in the case of James Burns, accused of murder, was spent discussing security measures and logistics for the upcoming jury trial, set to begin Jan. 9.
The state is not asking that Burns be shackled during the trial, and he will be allowed to wear plainclothes rather than his inmate uniform. Chief Judge Mark Clarke, who is presiding over the case, expressed some concern about security at the trial.
"Anytime counsel leaves a case because he is allegedly attacked by the defendant, security is a concern," said Clarke.
The trial is expected to last about a week, following jury selection which will take place the morning of Monday, Jan. 9.
Burns' case has been a series of twists and turns since it began. Burns entered a plea of guilty to the 2004 murder of Thomas Condon in 2006, but appealed the plea agreement, arguing he did not understand he would have to serve 100 percent of the sentence.
The Fifth District Appellate Court ruled in his favor, and Burns withdrew his guilty plea. This meant Burns would get a new airing of the case in the court system.
Since the appeals court returned the case to the local court the defendant has been through several attorneys, one of whom accused Burns of attacking him.
Burns even tried to fire his public defender, Nathan Rowland, and represent himself. Clarke convinced Burns this would not be a good move, and Rowland has continued to represent him.