A spokesman for the state's judicial branch said Monday he received an email from the office of Barton County District Judge Hannelore Kitts indicating she denied a change of venue for 37-year-old Adam Longoria.
Longoria faces trial March 26 on charges of capital murder and sexual offenses in the August 2010 death of Alicia DeBolt, whose charred body was found at the asphalt plant where he worked. Alicia had disappeared days earlier from her Great Bend home.
Defense attorneys contend Longoria can't get a fair trial in Barton County. They cite a survey of 400 county residents that found all were familiar with the case and 94 percent thought Longoria was guilty.
But the judge sided with prosecutors who say Longoria can get a fair trial in Great Bend.
