ABINGDON, Va. – We now know when the trial of James Jordan, the man charged with killing an Appalachian Trail hiker and attacking another with a hunting knife in Wythe County, will begin.
It’s scheduled to begin in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon on Sept. 7 at 9 a.m.
James Jordan, of West Yarmouth, Massachusetts, is scheduled to go on trial in January in the 2019 killing of Ronald Sanchez Jr., 43, of Oklahoma City, and the wounding of a female hiker.
He has a history of mental illness and was originally declared incompetent to stand trial, but a judge in June 2020 found that he is now competent and the case against him can move forward.
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Pretrial motions are scheduled for July 2 and Aug. 24.