Trial postponed for Cairo man accused in fatal bank robbery

BENTON, Ill. (AP) - A jury trial has been postponed for a 30-year-old man accused of fatally stabbing two southern Illinois bank employees and critically wounding a third during an attempted robbery.

James Watts of Cairo (KAIR-oh) has pleaded not guilty to charges filed in connection with the May 15 holdup at the First National Bank branch in Cairo.

The Southern Illinoisan (http://bit.ly/1ATDz1e ) reports a trial had been scheduled for this month, but it's been postponed until the U.S. Department of Justice decides whether to seek the death penalty.

A new jury trial date has been set for mid-August.

The president of the bank branch, 52-year-old Anita Grace of Olive Branch and another employee, 52-year-old Nita Smith of Wickliffe, Kentucky, were killed in the attempted robbery. A 23-year-old woman survived.

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Information from: Southern Illinoisan, http://www.southernillinoisan.com