Today, after nearly two months of postponement, a judge will rule whether Josephy Alberto Ventura should be tried on charges of murdering Penn State senior Michael Donahue.

Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira said he is prepared to call about six witnesses to the stand -- those who were in Club Love, 129 1/2 S. Pugh St., the night of Donahue's fatal stabbing, and police officers involved in the arrest of Ventura, 27, of East Prospect Avenue.

The preliminary hearing has been continued twice at the request of the defense because of the tenuous status of Ventura's representation. Ventura, who is charged with first- and third-degree murder, was deciding whether to hire a private attorney or be represented by a public defender.

Late last week, he chose Joe Amendola, a private State College attorney, to represent him in court.

Donahue, 22, of Drums, was stabbed in the heart Feb. 17. He died in Mount Nittany Medical Center Feb. 19 from a puncture wound to the bottom of his heart. Ventura was arrested the night of the incident and later charged with the murder.

When asked about the cloudy details of the night -- namely what role Donahue played in the bar fight that ended with his stabbing -- Madeira would not say for sure if those details would become clear.

"Some of those questions will likely be answered," he said, adding that he's not disclosing everything at the preliminary hearing today. The purpose, Madeira said, is to present just enough evidence to send the case to trial -- to "show that a crime was committed and that this person [Ventura] likely committed it."

Amendola said witness reports about the events leading up to the stabbing remain inconsistent. And because Ventura was drunk that night, he doesn't remember much about the incident -- an element of the case that's "been a problem from the beginning," Amendola said.

According to court documents, Donahue's friends and Ventura's friends were involved in an altercation at Club Love, a second-floor, New York-style nightclub, in the early morning hours of Feb. 17. Ventura and Donahue didn't know each other before meeting at Club Love, the State College Police Department said.

Ventura was subdued by bar staff and apprehended by police after Donahue was stabbed. A bloody wood-handled kitchen knife with a three-inch blade was discovered in the lining of Ventura's jacket during police questioning, according to court documents.

The documents also indicate that several witnesses identified Ventura as Donahue's attacker the night of the stabbing.

At a press conference in February, police reported that a motive for the stabbing had not been established. However, court documents indicate that Ventura was upset about someone physically assaulting a woman he referred to as both his girlfriend and wife -- Penn State student Kristen Fisher, who lived with Ventura on East Prospect Avenue.

No further information regarding a motive has been made available since the press conference. Perhaps today, things will be brought into focus, Amendola said.

Amendola said family and friends of Ventura are baffled by the incident because he is not known as a violent person.

"He's very, very depressed and very sad about everything that's happened," he added.

To secure a first-degree murder conviction, the prosecution must prove that Ventura killed Donahue maliciously and intentionally. First-degree murder is punishable by either the death penalty or life in prison.