Laura Taft
Man charged with murdering son, then girlfriend in Clearwater has new approach
LARGO — Craig Wall appeared in court Friday morning but this time he did not offer to plead guilty to murdering his girlfriend Laura Taft.
During a hearing last month, Wall said he was willing to plead guilty to murdering Taft, but wouldn't plead guilty to murdering his baby son, Craig Wall Jr.
In that hearing, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Richard Luce refused to accept the plea, saying he needed to wait until he was assigned an attorney.
At Friday's hearing, attorney William Bennett appeared with Wall, who did not make any comments. Afterward, Bennett said he could not reveal whether Wall still wished to plead guilty, but he made no moves to do so during the hearing. The next hearing was set for Aug. 27.
Wall was considered a suspect in the death of his son at the time he was released on $1,000 bail in February on a misdemeanor charge of violating a domestic violence injunction that Taft had against him. After being released from jail, he killed Taft, 29, in her Clearwater apartment, police say.
Wall, 35, has been charged with two counts of murder, and prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/criminal/craig-wall-charged-with-murdering-son-girlfriend-appears-in-court/1101665
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