By Joyce Kryszak
Buffalo, NY – The attorney for accused killer James Kopp says there's no truth to reports of a plea deal reported in the New York Post over the weekend.
Still, a report late Monday by the Associated Press said a meeting will be held in court today that could affect the trial.
Both Bruce Barket and District Attorney Frank Clark say a "gag" order in the case prevents them from commenting.
Reports of a possible plea deal, in a case already mired in controversy, quickly drew attention.
The anti-abortion militant eluded police for two and a half years before his capture in France. A complex extradition brought Kopp back to Buffalo.
But more controversy came with him.
Protests on both sides of the issue heated up even further after Kopp's jailhouse confession last fall.
Now, media reports hint at "an agreement in principle."
But Kopp's attorney, Bruce Barket, said that doesn't involve a plea.
"There's no truth to that," said Barket. "The district attorney's office would never offer Jim a reduced plea. And Jim would never plead guilty to anything."
Barket also denied another media report from the weekend. Some Toronto outlets reported that Kopp could also soon face charges of attempted murder in Canada.
Kopp has been linked to the 1995 shooting of Hamilton doctor Hugh Scott. Barket said there's nothing new in the case that he's aware of.
"No authority, no person from Canada, law enforcement official from Canada, has contacted me at all," said Barket. "So, other than the pending charge, which has been pending for years, I know nothing about any charges in Canada."
Kopp is charged here with two counts of second-degree murder in the October 1998 shooting death of Amherst Doctor Barnett Slepian.
Barket insists jury selection will go on as scheduled tomorrow. Hundreds of potential jurists were prescreened last week with questionnaires.
Barket said he's optimistic they'll find twelve fair jurors.
"The questionnaires were a great help in kind of screening out some people who had some obvious bias toward one side or another. So, we'll see what happens," said Barket.
Jury selection is scheduled to conclude Friday, with opening arguments expected to begin on Monday, March 17.