DAVENPORT, Iowa — The trial of a twice convicted child killer will not take place until early next year.
Juries twice convicted Stanley Liggins in the death of Jennifer Lewis, who disappeared from her Rock Island, Illinois, neighborhood. Investigators say she was raped and strangled. Her body was wrapped in a plastic bag and set on fire near a Davenport elementary school.
The Iowa Supreme Court overturned his 1993 conviction. In November 2013, the Iowa Court of Appeals vacated Liggins’ second conviction and ordered a new trial.
The third trial was scheduled to begin in July 2016, but was delayed due to serious health issues for defense attorney Phil Ramirez, who will be traveling out of state for treatment.
Liggins was in court on Friday, June 24, and a new trial date was set for February 2017.
Scott County Attorney Mike Walton and his sister/co-counsel Julie will have their work cut out for them as some of the key witnesses have died in the past 26 years. Prosecutors hope to use transcripts of prior testimony in the two other trials.
Jennifer's mother has always said Liggins is exactly where he should be. Liggins has been held in the Scott County Jail for the past two years, claiming that jurors have twice convicted the wrong man.