Expect a rocky start in the stripper dismemberment trial of Terry Speaks today in Louisiana.
The 42-year-old and his ex girlfriend are each accused of luring, killing, and dismembering an exotic dancer who worked in a strip club on New Orleans’ famed Bourbon Street in the summer of 2012.
The pair will be tried separately for their roles in the murder of Jaren Lockhart and could face life in prison if convicted of the gruesome crime, but proceedings for Speaks were scheduled to begin today, wherein some problems lie.
Apart from the fact that two new victims whose disappearance, slayings and mutilations resemble that of Lockhart’s -- one of whom was also a Bourbon Street stripper -- is the fact that Speaks has motioned for the removal of his court appointed lawyer.
The defendant complained in his court papers that attorney John Benz has not launched a competent defense for him and wants the supposed lackey litigator replaced immediately.
It’s not clear if he’ll succeed on that motion, but the judge is nonetheless compelled to dispose of the matter before anything else in the stripper dismemberment trial of Terry Speaks can continue.
Jury selections had been slated to begin this week which both attorney and client would normally attend together, although a trial delay will likely be petitioned for instead, especially if Speaks is assigned new counsel.
