OTTAWA – The re-trial of 52-year-old Arizona prison inmate Ralph Corey has been delayed until Oct. 16. Corey was set to be retried on charges of kidnapping, attempted rape, and sexual battery of a Williamsburg teenager 12 years, After the prosecution requested new DNA evidence, Corey’s attorneys asked for and received the continuance to have a chance to examine the test results, Franklin County Attorney Stephen Hunting said. Hunting said he believes the DNA tests could strengthen his case. DNA evidence figured heavily in the first trial, in which Corey was convicted of all charges. A Kansas Bureau of Investigation cold-case computer program matched Corey’s DNA to evidence in the 12-year-old case. However, The first trial was declared a mistrial when a court reporter head from a juror that during the jury’s deliberation, another juror had used a Smart Phone to call up a geographical map of a certain area of the United States, an action which Hunting said appears to have figured in Corey’s conviction.
Wednesday, Aug. 22, 6:30 p.m.