Cody Virgin
Prosecutors seek death penalty for Randolph
By Kevin Reagan
Arizona City Independent
FLORENCE — Prosecutors are intending to seek the death penalty for the man accused of killing Cody Virgin earlier this year.
William Randolph, 26, was arrested in February on suspicion of murdering Virgin in a remote area of Arizona City and then disposing of the 25-year-old’s charred body south of Coolidge.
Virgin had been in a relationship with Randolph’s ex-wife before his death. The defendant is accused of developing a fake Facebook profile and using it to send Virgin messages, luring him out to where he was killed.
Earlier this month, the Pinal County Attorney’s Office filed a notice that it intends to seek the death penalty in Randolph’s case.
Since the “heinous, cruel” crime was done in a “cold, calculated” manner, prosecutors allege, it warrants the aggravating circumstances for imposing the death penalty.
PCAO attorneys may call the local medical examiner and crime scene detectives to testify during Randolph’s trial to prove the murder was especially heinous and depraved.
According to court documents, prosecutors may present Facebook account records to prove the crime had been planned and calculated.
Aside from his first-degree murder charge, Randolph is also accused of instructing family members to harass his former wife while he’s been in jail. His ex-wife filed an order of protection against Randolph a couple months before Virgin’s murder.
Randolph was indicted for aggravated harassment about a month after being arrested.
The defendant was reassigned a new attorney shortly after PCAO filed its death penalty notice since his former counsel was not eligible to work on a capital case.
John Schaus, Randolph’s new attorney, briefly appeared in court Friday morning with Randolph for an update on the case. The defense attorney told Pinal County Superior Court Judge Jason Holmberg he was still in the process of reviewing thousands of pages of evidence.
The judge pushed Randolph’s next court appearance back to June 16.
Because PCAO filed its death penalty notice, Randolph is no longer eligible to post bail as a matter of state law. He remains in the custody of the Pinal County Adult Detention Center.
http://www.pinalcentral.com/arizona_...814192687.html
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