A Texarkana grandmother accused of gunning down her former son-in-law at the car dealership where he worked in 2015 wants her trial to be held somewhere other than Bowie County.
Annette Fisher, 54, appeared Friday before 5th District Judge Bill Miller for a pretrial hearing with Mount Pleasant, Texas, lawyer Mark Lesher at the Bi-State Justice Building in downtown Texarkana.
Lesher filed a motion for a change of venue in the case late Thursday afternoon citing concern that pretrial publicity has made it impossible for Fisher to get a fair trial in Bowie County.
Miller scheduled a hearing to address the motion next week. Jury selection is currently scheduled to begin Jan. 9 at the Bowie County courthouse in New Boston.
At a hearing last month, Lesher said he intended to pursue an insanity defense for Fisher. But at Friday's hearing, Lesher said he would not be seeking a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity.
Assistant District Attorney Lauren Richards asked Lesher if he could provide the state with a copy of any report detailing the findings of a psychological expert who evaluated Fisher for the defense. Richards said Lesher denied he has received a formal report but that he has received preliminary findings, which have led him to abandon the insanity defense.
Fisher is charged with felony murder in the July 22, 2015, shooting of Russell Scott Cain. Cain had been granted full custody of two children he shared with Fisher's daughter.
Fisher allegedly brought Cain lunch from a local deli before emptying one magazine, reloading, and firing additional shots while in the parking lot of Pete Mankins Used Car Center on Summerhill Road. Fisher was arrested within minutes of the shooting and has been in custody since.
In late 2015, Lesher asked Miller to order a competency evaluation for Fisher, citing concern that she was delusional. Fisher was deemed incompetent and committed to a secure state hospital for treatment. Earlier this year she was deemed competent and returned to the Bowie County jail and is under court order to continue taking medication as prescribed.
Fisher's bail is set at $1 million. She faces five to 99 years or life in prison if found guilty of murder.