WAYNESVILLE, Mo. (AP) - A man charged with raping and killing his 9-year-old stepdaughter will not go on trial in August as scheduled.
David Spears is charged with killing Rowena Ford of Stella in November 2007. A judge on Wednesday agreed to delay the trial, with jury selection beginning Oct 30, 2012, in Clay County.
Spears was married to Rowan's mother when the girl was killed. A friend of Spears, Chris Collings, is also charged in the girl's death. Investigators think the two took the girl from her home to Collings' home, where they raped and killed her. Her body was found in McDonald County a week after she disappeared.
KY3-TV reports that Collings' trial is scheduled to start next March 5 in Rolla, with jury selection starting Feb. 27 in Platte County.
Information from: KYTV-TV, http://www.ky3.com