SANTA ANA : High Court to Review Murder Case Ruling

The murder trial of Richard K. Overton, accused of killing his third wife with a fatal dose of cyanide, was again delayed Monday as the state Supreme Court agreed to review a lower court’s ruling in the case.

The trial was abruptly suspended in July when Overton suffered chest pains after several days of testifying in his own defense.

Attorney Jack M. Earley said Monday that he had petitioned the high court to review a motion on Overton’s behalf that was recently denied by the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana. Earley, who did not represent Overton during his trial, declined to discuss the motion.

Sources close to the case have said Overton is attempting to make mid-trial changes in his defense team.

The trial, scheduled to resume Monday, was postponed until next Tuesday but cannot resume until the state court makes its ruling, officials said. Prosecutors and defense attorneys have refused to discuss reasons for the delay.

Overton, a part-time college professor and computer consultant, is charged with murdering his wife, Janet L. Overton, 46, on Jan. 24, 1988, by putting cyanide in her food, allegedly in retaliation for her reported extramarital affairs.

Overton, who has pleaded not guilty, testified that he never intended to kill her and thought of the poisoning as more of a prank than a crime.