Matthew enters courtroom smiling, judge denies most pretrial motions during hearing

CHARLOTTESVILLE (WSLS 10) - A judge has responded to some of the pretrial motions filed by defense of the man charged with abducting and killing a University of Virginia student.

Jesse Matthew, Jr. was in Albermarle County Circuit Court Thursday for a pretrial motion hearing. Matthew is charged with capital murder in the September 2014 disappearance and death of 18-year-old Hannah Graham. His trial is set for next summer.

Matthew's attorney filed 12 pretrial motions, most of which were considered standard.

Matthew entered the courtroom with a smile. He wore a faded green and grey striped jumpsuit and was clean-shaven. In the courtroom, 10 Albemarle County sheriff's deputies were there for security.

During the hearing, Matthews lawyers stated repeatedly, this case has garnered a lot of attention and need a fair trial.

In Thursday's hearing, officers from the Albemarle County Sheriff's Office and the police department were the first testimonies in this case so far. They testified there are several hundred pieces of evidence for the case. On piece of evidence was a map found in the car Matthew drove while in Galveston, Texas, where he was arrested.

Officers said they found a map with several cities circled, showing he was headed for Mexico.

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Gil Harrington, mother of Morgan Harrington, was at the courthouse for Matthew's pretrial hearing.

Authorities said forensic evidence also has linked Matthew to their investigation of the 2009 disappearance and death of Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington. Matthew has not been charged in that case.

For a majority of Thursday's hearing, Harrington sat in the front, looking at Jesse Matthew. She said she wants her mother's love to be like a white hot flame in the courtroom.

One of the motions denied by the judge was to allow tokens or insignia in support of Hannah Graham from the courtroom. It was one of the motions Gil Harrington said she felt passionately about. She said she wants to wear orange, Hannah Graham's favorite color, and bring some memories of her daughter to court.

Harrington wore orange to the pretrial hearing.

Albemarle County Circuit Judge Cheryl Higgins responded Thursday to several of the defense motions at Thursday's hearing. The 12 motions filed and the judges responses so far are below. The remainder of the motions will be discussed as the day continues. Check back for updates.

• Denied - Motion invoking Matthew's 4th, 5th and 6th amendment rights specifically not to speak to law enforcement, the prosecutor, the attorney general's office and other government agencies.
• Approved - Motion for Matthew to be present at every hearing.
• Denied, but he may take notes during the hearings, on a hearing-by-hearing basis - Motion asking for Matthew to not be shackled in public and appear in his personal attire during the trial.
• Denied under pretrial, but taken under advisement for trial - Motion to bar tokens or insignia of support for either side during trial.
• Denied - Motion to appoint judge to hear expert funding requests.
• Denied - Motion to preserve all evidence, including biological evidence, physical evidence collected from crime scene and alleged weapons among others.
• Denied - Motion to preserve law enforcement notes.
• Denied - Motion to stop any additional state evidence testing or examination without notifying the defense for approval.
• Approved - Motion to have notice of parts of Jesse Matthew's criminal past planned for use during any sentencing hearing.
• Denied - Motion for particulars on statutory aggravators the commonwealth would use at a capital sentencing.
• Denied - Motion to examine evidence without the prosecutor or investigators present.
• Denied - Motion to prohibit extrajudicial statements including any talk of a guilty plea and other matters by lawyers.

WVIR and the Associated Press contributed to this article.