The murder trial of a Las Vegas man accused of gunning down his estranged wife in Fernley last spring has been delayed to September, Lyon County District Attorney Bob Auer said Tuesday.
Michael Fixer Newcastle, 36, was scheduled to go to trial July 13, in the May 2007 murder of his wife Shelby Hagedorn Joanette, 36.
Auer said Newcastle's attorney John Arrascada asked for more time to go over reports in preparing for his client's defense. Arrascada could not be reached for comment.
On May 5, 2007, Joanette, who was in the process of divorcing Newcastle, left her parents' Fernley home to check on her horses boarded on Farm District Road. In the 3000 block of Farm District Road, Joanette's truck broke down and she called her father on his cell phone. By the time her dad arrived at the vehicle, Joanette had been shot twice in the head. She died two days later.
Witnesses reported seeing a car similar to Newcastle's in the area, and Lyon County deputies broadcast a description of the vehicle to the media and Nevada law enforcement.
Newcastle was stopped by Esmeralda County police in Beatty some 12 hours later and 300 miles south of Fernley.
Auer said the new trial date has been set for Sept. 2. It is expected to take two weeks.
- Contact reporter F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.
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