Burns trial to resume after continuance
After more than a month-long delay, the trial against Brian Burns will pick up later this month with a status hearing.
Burns, 56, faces two counts of first-degree murder, and one count of concealment of a body in connection with the death of his estranged wife Carla Burns. Burns is accused of shooting his wife - who was in the process of divorcing him - and burning her remains to conceal her body.
Nick Brown, attorney for Burns, said that Burns is "maintaining his innocence…and will do so through every phase of the trial."
Brown, in a phone conversation Wednesday morning, would not comment in detail, but he did confirm that the defense team has been in contact with experts who will provide testimony in the case. Brown is unsure whether a trial date will be set at the status hearing this month, but said that Burns is "eager" for the trial to begin.
The status hearing is set for 2 p.m., Aug. 25.
According to Assistant State's Attorney Jason Olson, the status hearing will function by checking on the status of both the defense and prosecution's cases. Depending on the complexity and conditions of a case, a trial can often last three to four years. However for the Burns case, if both sides are ready to proceed, then a trial date may be set. If one side is not ready, then they may ask for a continuance, which Morris can either grant or deny at his own discretion.
Burns' last appearance in court was at the end of June, when Brown presented a motion for a continuance to Judge Walden Morris. As Brown detailed in the motion, Burns' defense team needed additional time to gather expert witnesses and testimony to aid their case, specifically referencing experts in the fields of ballistics and anthropology.
The defense currently has a psychiatric expert who will, "provide a forensic analysis of the Defendant's (Burns) current mental state as well as at the time of the alleged incident." According to the motion, the unidentified expert's analysis of Burns would not be completed until later in the summer at the earliest; one of the reasons behind the defense's motion.