CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — The trial of a man accused in the killing of a Harrison County man last March has been continued.
Shane Andrew Miller, 22, of Lumberport, was supposed to stand trial on charges related to the death of Darrell Golden beginning next week.
However, a motion filed on behalf of Miller by his attorney was granted by Harrison County Circuit Judge John Lewis Marks to extend the trial to the next term of court.
The reasons for the delay were that Miller’s attorney Perry Jones will be invovled with the trial of Sidney Arthur Muller –a man accused in a 2013 quadruple homicide– that begins next week and difficulty finding a DNA exert to run tests on evidence and also be available next week.
The state, represented by Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Traci Cook, had no objections to the motion.
In March of last year, Golden was reported missing. Three days later, his body was found near a pond on Jones Run Road.
Investigators believe Shane Miller and Tracy Boals killed Golden for talking to police about a prior break in at a business in downtown Clarksburg. According to the criminal complaint, they beat the man and then Shane dragged his body to the pond and Tracy held his face underwater until Golden was dead.
The two allegedly left his body underwater but levels dropped and the body was discovered by a fisherman. In addition, the Millers allegedly left their bloody clothes at the scene and tried to clean blood out of Shane Miller’s car.
After the two were charged with the crime, Shane married Tracy in hopes that it would mean she could not testify against him. However, that does not apply to crimes that are allegedly committed together.
Last month, Tracy pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter as part of an agreement with the state in which she will cooperate in the case against Shane.
The new trial was tentatively scheduled to begin on November 9 and is expected to last around five days.