Trial in Yosemite Slaying Not Likely Until 2000

Motel handyman Cary Stayner, who allegedly confessed to killing four women in and around Yosemite National Park, probably won’t face trial until next year in the killing of naturalist Joie Ruth Armstrong.

Judge Anthony Ishii on Thursday said a trial date probably will be scheduled Dec. 2, after both sides finish a series of pretrial motions.

The judge asked Stayner if he understood that he won’t be getting the speedy trial defendants are entitled to ask for. “Yes, your Honor,” Stayner said in response to that and several other questions during the 15-minute hearing.

Stayner, 38, worked as a handyman at the Cedar Lodge in El Portal, near where Armstrong worked at the Yosemite Institutes leading outdoor education programs.

Stayner told investigators he killed Armstrong July 21, and sources said he also confessed to killing Carole and Juliana Sund and their Argentine friend Silvina Pelosso, who were last seen at Cedar Lodge on Feb. 15. To date, he has been charged only with the Armstrong killing.

The judge also approved a second public defender for Stayner because he could face the death penalty if convicted in the Armstrong case.

Ishii scheduled the next hearing for Aug. 31, and gave the defense until Aug. 27 to respond to a government request for hair samples and body fluids.