Trial delayed in Coast Guard shooting case

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - The trial of a Kodiak man charged in the fatal shooting of two men at a Coast Guard station has been postponed.

The Kodiak Daily Mirror reports (https://is.gd/DonvRK) James Wells’ trial was to have started Monday, but has been postponed until March 31.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis says the trial in Anchorage will likely last several weeks.

Federal prosecutors will not seek the death penalty if Wells is convicted.

Wells is charged in the shootings of Coast Guardsmen Petty Officer 1st Class James Hopkins and retired Chief Petty Officer Richard Belisle (BEHL’-eye-ul) in April 2012.

The 62-year-old Wells faces six felony charges: two counts each of first-degree murder, murder of a U.S. officer and use of a firearm in a violent crime. He has pleaded innocent to all the charges.

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Information from: Kodiak (Alaska) Daily Mirror, https://www.kodiakdailymirror.com