The jury trial for a former Omaha high school principal charged in his wife's murder has been postponed for a seventh time, according to the Boone County Circuit Court docket.
Rocky Brian Dodson, 53, is charged with second-degree murder in the March 6, 2022, death of his wife, Amanda Dodson, 36.
Rocky Dodson's trial was scheduled to begin Sept. 11, but it has been continued to Nov. 27, according to the online court docket.
The trial was originally set for Sept. 23, 2022.
Dodson's attorney, Shane Wilkinson, filed a motion to continue Aug. 16, saying discovery in the case was "voluminous" and that he "has been in communication with the State regarding outstanding discovery material."
"Given the nature of this case, undersigned counsel anticipates the discovery process to take some time," wrote Wilkinson. "Some of the outstanding discovery material appears to include crime lab material.
"Defendant has retained an expert witness pathologist of his own who is currently reviewing the case and preparing his report. Counsel respectfully asks for additional time for his witness to perform his due diligence."
Wilkinson filed three previous motions to continue that contained that same wording.
A final hearing in the case is now set for Oct. 24. Circuit Judge John Putman is presiding over the case.
According to a charging document, "the defendant struck a blow to the throat of Amanda Dodson, which resulted in fractured, broken and crushed tracheal cartilage" resulting in her death.
Murder in the second degree is a Class A felony. A person convicted of a Class A felony faces a sentence of six to 30 years in prison, according to Arkansas Code Annotated 5-4-401(a)(2).
Rocky Dodson has pleaded innocent and is free on bond.
Dodson, who was also the high school boys basketball coach, resigned from the school district at the end of April 2020.
Omaha is 3 miles south of the Missouri state line.