Covener trial postponed; lawyer argues charges were unclear

By TRACY WILSON
Collegian Staff Writer

BELLEFONTE -- The trial of former Undergraduate Student Government Senate President Jason Covener was postponed at a pretrial conference yesterday.

Covener was arrested in November on charges of computer tampering, unlawful use of a computer and wiretapping relating to incidents within the USG office. He resigned his position as Senate president shortly after his arrest in November.

Normally, the trial date would have been set at yesterday's conference, but the judge has yet to rule on motions filed by Karen Muir, Covener's attorney.

One motion was for the revision of the bill of particulars, a document listing the charges for which the defendant is being tried. The existing bill is unclear and only states charges listed in the preliminary hearing transcript, she said. She is motioning for a more specific listing of the criminal complaints.

"The scope of the case has not yet been defined," Centre County Judge Thomas K. Kistler said after continuing the trial until the next term of court, which begins in April.

In addition to the revised bill of particulars, Muir also filed motions for the suppression of evidence and dismissal of charges.

Covener's next pretrial conference is scheduled for March 30 and jury selection is tentatively scheduled for April 12. Jury selection cannot begin until the judge has ruled on all motions.

The trial most likely will take place during the April term of court, said Karen Kuebler, the assistant district attorney prosecuting the case. The trial could be postponed again if the motions have not been ruled on.

"I am very optimistic about the case and the facts based on the review," Muir said. "The Commonwealth will have a difficult battle at trial."

Kuebler said she could not comment on the evidence at this point, but said, "We think we have the right person."