The trial of Robert Tulloch, the older of the two Vermont teenagers charged with the brutal stabbing deaths of Dartmouth professors Half and Susanne Zantop, will be postponed until March 11.
Grafton Superior Court Judge Peter Smith approved the prosecution's motion to delay on Monday to allow time for further forensic testing. The trial was originally slated for late January.
The defense agreed to the postponement because the delay will benefit both sides in the case, according to Tulloch defense attorney Richard Guerriero.
"It's just a matter of scheduling in a way that's reasonable to give everyone time to be able to evaluate the evidence," he said.
The impetus behind the prosecution's request was the nearly two-month-long delay caused by the defense's appeal of a June 14 order that Tulloch provide the state with blood, hair and handwriting samples, Senior Assistant Attorney General Kelly Ayotte told The Manchester Union Leader.
The state Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal last Friday -- an outcome not surprising to Guerriero, who explained that it is unusual for a court to hear such matters prior to a trial.
Counsel generally decides to lodge pre-trial appeals only in the more serious cases. The Tulloch trial, Guerriero said, "is one of the most serious cases you can have."
The defense based its appeal on a provision in the New Hampshire state constitution which stipulates that a defendant may not be compelled to furnish evidence against himself.
Such evidence, according to Guerriero, includes the blood, hair and handwriting samples requested of Tulloch.
"Our appeal was that the court should follow the clear language of the constitution," he said.
Guerriero refused to comment on whether or not Tulloch has submitted the requested samples.
A trial date has yet to be scheduled for Tulloch's alleged accomplice, James "Jimmy" Parker. The state is first attempting to certify the teenager, who was 16 at the time of the murders, to stand trial as an adult.
The Zantops were stabbed to death in their Etna home on the afternoon of January 27.
