Nipsey Hussle’s accused killer just got a new lawyer, who is claiming that he previously suffered from mental health issues.
Eric Holder, 31, will now be represented by Deputy Public Defender Aaron Jansen, who hopes this case will go to trial by early December after facing many delays. Holder’s former attorney and former O.J. Simpson prosecutor Christopher Darden stepped down after being appointed to serve as a state judge.
The case was also pushed back after a previously assigned judge retired. And delayed many times due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, according to the Daily News.
“A lot of the work was done by my predecessor,” Jansen said to the outlet after the hearing on Tuesday. “Hopefully, by the end of the year, maybe early December, we can go to trial.”
Holder stands accused of killing Nipsey Hussle in front of his Marathon Clothing Store in March of 2019. The two spoke, reportedly about snitching, before Holder left. He returned a short while later and fatally shot the rapper and injured two others.
He is now facing charges of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and one count of felony possession of a firearm. Holder has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
“He does have a significant mental health history,” Jansen said. “One of the things affecting him [in March 2019] was that his mother had just passed away. He was pretty despondent.”
The alleged killer showed up to court for Tuesday’s hearing but did not appear before the judge. Jansen asked the judge to remove Holder’s handcuffs because he “did not want him portrayed that way.” The judge said he would need more time to consider the request and allowed the attorney to speak on his client’s behalf.
Holder has been behind bars since his arrest on a $6.5 million bail. He asked for it to be reduced, but the request was denied in April.
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