DeLand, FL – The Deltona man charged with killing his wife and 2 step-kids over 2 years ago will be back in court on Thursday.
A Volusia County judge will go over 5 motions in the Luis Toledo triple murder trial starting around 10 AM at the Volusia County Courthouse in DeLand.
The hearing will begin as soon as 7th Circuit Judge Raul Zambrano finishes arraignments and expedited hearings, according to court spokeswoman Ludmilla Lelis.
“We estimate the hearing would start about 10 AM,” Lelis added. “It could start earlier if the other hearings conclude quickly.”
Among the motions Zambrano will consider include prosecutors looking to admit evidence of a prior domestic violence incident between Toledo and Yessenia Suarez at her job in Lake Mary.
Police say that happened the day before she and her kids – 9-year-old Thalia Otto and 8-year-old Michael Otto – were reported missing in October 2013 from the Covent Gardens Drive home they shared with Toledo.
Investigators believe Toledo and his wife got into an argument over her cheating on him with a co-worker just before he killed her and the kids.
Toledo has entered not guilty pleas in all 3 murders and is facing the death penalty if convicted. Jury selection begins on January 19th.
The 33-year-old’s legal team is also asking Zambrano to rule on 4 motions they have filed during Thursday’s hearing, including the exclusion of testimony from the medical examiner.
Zambrano has already ruled on several other motions related to this case, including moving the trial to St. Augustine due to extensive media coverage locally and denying prosecutors the option to tell the jury about Toledo’s alleged ties to the Latin Kings gang.
Copyright 2016 Southern Stone Communications.