4 months ago
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A judge has granted a bench trial for a woman accused of killing her four daughters.
DC Superior Court Judge Frederick Weisberg accepted a jury trial waiver on Thursday from Banita Jacks, despite objections from her own attorneys. That means Weisberg will have to decide her case himself.
The decomposing bodies of Jacks' daughters were found in January 2008 in her southeast Washington home.
Jacks' attorneys asked for the trial to be delayed, saying she is not competent and has refused to meet with them on two recent occasions. Jacks says she could not meet with them because she was fasting.
Weisberg says he has found Jacks to be "completely lucid" and capable of making decisions.
The trial is set to begin July 13.
