Justin Barkley trial: Jury selected, but trial at a standstill

Following over 15 collective hours of vetting over the course of three days, the jury is finally seated for the murder trial Dryden resident Justin Barkley.

With that out of the way, the trial, which is expected to take upwards of three weeks, is at a standstill. Despite the trial being listed on the court calendar through Friday this week, Tompkins County Judge John Rowley dismissed the jury today until next week, citing "unexpected issues" for the delay.

"One-hundred percent honest," Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said following the court's dismissal, "We don't know the next time we're going to be in court."

Rowley said he expects the trial to proceed on either Tuesday or Thursday next week.

Barkley is accused of murdering UPS driver William Schumacher, of Candor, in December 2016 in Ithaca's Walmart parking lot. He then shot at responding police during a standoff at a Dryden residence.

Barkley later claimed during his arraignment that he thought he was shooting then-President-elect Donald Trump. He was ruled mentally competent to appear in court in March.

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Justin Barkley murder trial: Jury selection starts Jan. 8 in Tompkins County Court

Justin Barkley murder trial: Jury selection begins

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