JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Despite his age and infirmity, a 66-year-old man could still face the death penalty in the cold case murder of a 10-year-old girl -- if he is convicted.
James Leon Jackson is charged in the 1984 rape and murder of Tammy Welch.
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Jackson was considered a suspect all along but wasn’t charged until 2013.
In 2016, Jackson’s lawyers filed a motion to block the state attorney's office from seeking the death penalty, per the U.S. Supreme Court's Hurst ruling.
At a hearing Tuesday, the judge denied that motion.
Other motions to preclude the death penalty are pending, and Jackson’s lawyers now want a psychiatric evaluation done.
Jackson’s trial is set for the end of the month.