Huff trial in Kramer death reset

At the request of his attorney, the trial of James L. Huff, 38, which was scheduled to begin June 9, will now begin Dec. 1. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty if Huff is convicted.Huff, Sara's uncle, was charged more than three years ago with the murder of the girl. Her body was found Sept. 27, 1995, in a shallow part of the Sangamon River near the Wyckles Road Bridge. Authorities say she had been sexually assaulted.The case was back in court Monday for a continuation of a hearing in which Huff's attorney, Peter Wise, is seeking to suppress statements Huff allegedly made to police - including one in which police say he admitted he laid on top of the girl, possibly killing her accidentally.Circuit Judge Ted Paine denied Wise's motion in part on Monday, declining to suppress statements Huff made to police on Dec. 16, 1997.Paine has yet to rule on two other statements given on Dec. 22, 1997, and March 27, 2000.The content of the statements was never discussed during the hearing, but police reports entered into the record during the hearing reveal Huff denied involvement in the crime during the Dec. 16, 1997, interview with Decatur police detective Jason Walker.But during the 2000 interview, Huff allegedly told Walker he and his then-wife, Kathy, had gotten into a fight at a tavern the night Sara disappeared.Huff allegedly said he went to the trailer of Brad and Sally Kramer - Sara's parents - to sleep and laid on top of Sara, possibly crushing or suffocating her.According to the report, Huff told police when he realized the girl was dead, he placed her inside his car, then drove around, then placed her body under the bridge. Huff denied sexually assaulting the girl, and said he loved her like she was his own.According to the report, Huff told Walker he placed Sara's body under the Wyckles Road Bridge because it was close to home and family. He then requested an attorney, and Walker stopped the interview.Police have said drops of blood genetically matching Huff were found on Sara's bed sheets. And during the March 27, 2000, interview, Walker told Huff that fibers found on Sara's body and her bed comforter were consistent with fibers taken

from the 1981 Ford Mustang Huff was driving at the time of the murder.

At the time of the March 2000 interview Huff had been, and remains, imprisoned for an unrelated sexual assault conviction. He was brought back to Decatur from prison on a court order to testify before a grand jury investigating Sara's death. Wise contends police violated the court order that brought him back by interrogating him."The writ was simply a means to get him up here to interrogate him again," Wise said. "Doing that and planning that prior to the grand jury testimony is an abuse of that writ."Huff's grand jury testimony days after that interview also was entered into evidence Monday. Huff denied making statements to police and said he wanted a lawyer."I've been trying to get one for the last two days," Huff said.Wise also said police did not properly inform Huff of his Miranda rights and sharply criticized them for not video- or audiotaping any of the interviews.On Dec. 22, 1997, Mark Cheviron, a licensed polygraph examiner, gave Huff a polygraph test, advising him of his Miranda rights before administering it. Wise argued that any statements Huff subsequently made to police should be suppressed because officers did not reinform him of his rights.Prosecutors say the statements were properly obtained.

First Assistant State's Attorney Jack Ahola said Cheviron was acting as an agent of the police when he informed Huff of his rights. And Ahola said there was nothing improper about police questioning Huff before he testified before the grand jury.

"It would probably not be a good idea to put a witness on before a grand jury without attempting to talk to him," he said.Paine plans to issue a ruling on the admissibility of the Dec. 22, 1997, statement and the March 27, 2000, statement by the end of the week.In asking the trial be continued, Wise cited several factors, including the difficulty he had receiving discovery material when the case was assigned to former Assistant State's Attorney Jerry Finney. Finney has since been fired.Wise also said his office mistakenly failed to submit fiber evidence to an expert for testing.He also said he recently learned of audiotapes of Huff's phone calls from prison that had not yet been turned over to defense attorneys.Prosecutors did not object to the continuance, noting the serious nature of the charges against Huff.Stephanie Potter can be reached at 421-7984.