2008 Woodie Awards
Murder trial, appeal move forward in the slaying of students
Taylor Muller
Issue date: 3/4/08 Section: News
As one murder trial involving a UNO student nears the appeal process, another is just getting started.
The trial of the Omaha man found guilty of murdering a sophomore Jessica O'Grady will go before an appellate court and in another UNO murder case, the trial has recently entered the discovery process.
Christopher Edwards was found guilty last March of murdering O'Grady. He was sentenced to 80 years to life for a second-degree murder charge as well as no fewer than 20 years for the use of a lethal weapon to commit a felony.
Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said the defense had recently filed the brief on the appeal and that his office would be filing a brief with the attorney general's office in response.
"It's not unusual. Most cases get appealed," Kleine said. "They're saying there wasn't enough evidence to convict him, that the trial court errored in admitting evidence regarding DNA."
Edwards was convicted on June 15, 2007.
Another UNO student was also the target of lethal violence: pre-nursing student and Goodrich scholar Brittany Williams, 21, was shot as she sat in the drive-through lane of a Kentucky Fried Chicken/Long John Silver's restaurant at 7601 N. 30th St. on Jan. 21.
An Omaha man was apprehended as he attempted to flee the scene. Police identified the man as 19-year-old Kyle Bormann. Bormann was later charged with the first-degree murder of Williams.
The trial is currently in the discovery process, said Kleine.
"We're putting together our investigative reports now," Kleine said. "Everything we have we give to Tom Riley, the public defender, and he'll file his pretrial motions. It'll take maybe a month or so."
No date has yet been set for Bormann's trial.
The trial of the Omaha man found guilty of murdering a sophomore Jessica O'Grady will go before an appellate court and in another UNO murder case, the trial has recently entered the discovery process.
Christopher Edwards was found guilty last March of murdering O'Grady. He was sentenced to 80 years to life for a second-degree murder charge as well as no fewer than 20 years for the use of a lethal weapon to commit a felony.
Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said the defense had recently filed the brief on the appeal and that his office would be filing a brief with the attorney general's office in response.
"It's not unusual. Most cases get appealed," Kleine said. "They're saying there wasn't enough evidence to convict him, that the trial court errored in admitting evidence regarding DNA."
Edwards was convicted on June 15, 2007.
Another UNO student was also the target of lethal violence: pre-nursing student and Goodrich scholar Brittany Williams, 21, was shot as she sat in the drive-through lane of a Kentucky Fried Chicken/Long John Silver's restaurant at 7601 N. 30th St. on Jan. 21.
An Omaha man was apprehended as he attempted to flee the scene. Police identified the man as 19-year-old Kyle Bormann. Bormann was later charged with the first-degree murder of Williams.
The trial is currently in the discovery process, said Kleine.
"We're putting together our investigative reports now," Kleine said. "Everything we have we give to Tom Riley, the public defender, and he'll file his pretrial motions. It'll take maybe a month or so."
No date has yet been set for Bormann's trial.
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