CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) - The trial has been delayed for a man accused of killing a woman and injuring two others at a suburban St. Louis Catholic supply store.
Thomas Bruce had been scheduled for trial on Oct. 13. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that a St. Louis County judge on Friday granted the delay. A new trial date was not set.
Bruce’s request cited ongoing restrictions on in-person court proceedings and public health risks from the coronavirus pandemic.
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Bruce is 54. He has been jailed for nearly two years on charges of first-degree murder and multiple counts of sodomy, armed criminal action, kidnapping, burglary and tampering with evidence. Authorities say he sexually assaulted two women and fatally shot 53-year-old Jamie Schmidt, a customer at the Catholic Supply store, on Nov. 19, 2018.
The judge set the next hearing for Dec. 4 to discuss setting a new trial date.
Bruce also has been charged in an attack on a 77-year-old Jefferson County woman two months before the Catholic Supply attack.
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