AUSTIN, Texas — A request by attorneys of Kaitlin Armstrong to suppress certain evidence in her murder trial was denied on Wednesday.
Armstrong is accused of killing cyclist Anna Moriah Wilson in East Austin on May 11 and then fleeing to Costa Rica. The defense filed two motions to suppress evidence before the trial begins.
The defense said a May 12 interview between Austin police detectives and Armstrong was conducted unfairly and the affidavit detailing the interview is inaccurate.
But State District Judge Brenda Kennedy ruled police did not violate Armstrong’s rights by continuing to question her after she requested a lawyer. Kennedy said the police statements made in the affidavit were not reckless and police had probable cause to arrest Armstrong. Armstrong was not under arrest when speaking with a detective and therefore “had no Fifth Amendment right to counsel,” Kennedy said.
Armstrong’s trial date is now tentatively scheduled for June 26. Travis County Court-at-Law Judge Brandy Mueller will replace Kennedy when she retires at the end of her term in December.
Armstrong was wanted for a separate charge, unrelated to Wilson's death. Her birthdate on the warrant was incorrect, so police couldn't book her in jail, detectives said. But the birthdate on the warrant was, in fact, the same.
Armstrong's attorneys claim evidence was obtained with an "illegal arrest warrant." They also claim that APD illegally interrogated Armstrong because they did not read her Miranda rights.
Armstrong's attorneys filed motions calling for a so-called Franks hearing to “traverse” the warrant by showing the details that established probable cause were false.
Armstrong's Jeep was seen on surveillance footage leaving the area of the home Wilson was staying at while she visited Austin for a cycling race. Armstrong later sold that vehicle, then flew from Austin to New York, then from New Jersey to Costa Rica. She was arrested in Provincia de Puntarena, Costa Rica, on June 29.
In July, Armstrong pleaded not guilty to the murder.
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