Famalaro Trial Delayed Until Next April : Courts: Officials say the postponement is needed because of the volume of evidence seized from the man accused of killing Denise Huber and storing her body in a freezer.

The trial of John J. Famalaro, accused of killing a Newport Beach woman and storing her body in a freezer, was postponed Monday for more than a year because of the massive volume of evidence.

“We have to go through the 65 boxes” police seized at Famalaro’s Arizona home, public defender Leonard Gumlia said. “He documented his entire life.”

Denise Huber disappeared in June, 1991, after her car broke down along the Corona del Mar Freeway, a short distance from her Newport Beach home. Her nude, handcuffed body was found in Arizona in July, 1994, in a freezer owned by Famalaro. Huber, 23, had been beaten, and duct tape covered her mouth and eyes.

At the request of Gumlia, Famalaro’s attorney, Orange County Superior Court Judge Kathleen E. O’Leary reset the trial from Oct. 2, 1995, to April 29, 1996.

Famalaro, 37, is charged with murder, kidnaping and sexual assault and faces the possibility of a death sentence.

Gumlia said he requested the delay because of the amount of materials recently turned over to him by authorities and the enormous task of winnowing it.

“It’s monumental in that ultimately a relatively small percentage of those that are named in these documents will be called as witnesses,” he said.

Still, he said, “We have estimated we will have to interview about 500 people by the time we go to trial. We expect to call about 100 witnesses at various phases of the case.”

The complexity of the case not withstanding, Gumlia said he did not expect an inordinate expense to the county.

“I don’t think our cost is going to be out of the average for what a normal death penalty cases run these days,” he said.

Before the scheduled trial, Gumlia said, he will present motions to suppress some of the evidence seized by police, including the truck in which the freezer was found. Gumlia said he also would ask that the trial be moved from Orange County, because of extensive pretrial publicity.

Orange County’s bankruptcy also delayed the defense, Gumlia said. One member of the defense team was transferred to other duties, and private experts were reluctant to begin work until they were assured of payment.

Prosecutors could not be reached for comment Monday.