NEW BRITAIN — A Connecticut judge has ordered a probable cause hearing for a convicted killer charged in the slayings of six other people.
Judge Joan Alexander in New Britain on Thursday set the hearing for William Devin Howell for May 11 at his request. People charged with murder in Connecticut have the right to a probable cause hearing at which prosecutors have to show there is enough evidence to continue to trial.
Police allege Howell killed six women and a man in 2003 and dumped the bodies behind a New Britain shopping center. The native of Hampton, Virginia, is serving 15 years in prison for manslaughter in one killing and faces murder charges in the other six.
Howell’s lawyer has said the charges are unproved allegations and he should be considered innocent.
