Gag Order in Klaas Case Maintained
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SAN JOSE — The man accused of kidnapping and killing Polly Klaas made his first appearance Monday in San Jose, where his trial was ordered moved.
A judge confirmed a Feb. 5 trial date for Richard Allen Davis, who could face the death penalty if convicted. Superior Court Judge Jack Komar also kept in place a gag order he issued earlier this month.
Komar said there was a “reasonable likelihood” that the spread of information about the case from outside the courtroom “would interfere with fair-trial rights . . . and the administration of justice in a negative fashion.”
Davis, 41, is accused of kidnapping the 12-year-old Petaluma girl from her bedroom during a slumber party in October 1993 and strangling her.
The girl’s disappearance led to a nationwide search. Davis was arrested two months later and, police said, confessed and led authorities to the girl’s shallow grave.
In November, a Sonoma County judge ordered the trial moved to Santa Clara County, finding that intensive news coverage of the crime would prevent Davis from receiving a fair trial in Sonoma County.
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