WACO, Texas — Cecily Aguilar returned to U.S. District Court (Western District of Texas) in Waco Tuesday as defense attorney Ashley Askari attempted to file additional motions in the case. Judge Alan Albright eventually denied met with both attorneys in-chamber to set a trial date.
The judge later signed a court order setting "jury selection and trial" in District Courtroom No. 1 on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023.
Aguilar is accused of conspiring with Fort Hood soldier Spc. Aaron Robinson after Robinson murdered Spc. Vanessa Guillen in 2020 according to the FBI.
Guillen was killed on April 22, 2020 on post by Robinson, according to a FBI criminal complaint. Robinson, with the help of Aguilar, later dismembered Guillen's body and buried her remains near the Leon River in Bell County, the complaint alleges.
Robinson later took his own life after escaping from Fort Hood.
Tuesday, defense attorney Ashley Askari asked the judge for a "bill of particulars" which would require the prosecutors to better specify the claims against Guillen. Askari claimed some of the counts again Aguilar were too vague.
Count one against Aguilar states Aguilar "Did unlawfully and knowingly combine, conspire, confederate, and agree with another person to corruptly alter, destroy, mutilate, and conceal any record document and other object, to wit: the body of V. G., and did attempt to do so, with the intent to impair its integrity and availability for use in an official proceeding, to wit: a United States Army Court-Martial of A.R., a Federal grand jury investigation of A.R. and Defendant and a Federal Criminal Trial of A.R..."
Askari claimed use of the working "another person" and "document" were vague and the defense wanted clarity on whether there were other conspirators or if Aguilar was accused specifically of destroying documents. She also claimed Count Seven, which accused Aguilar of deleting information in a Google Account belonging to Robinson, was also vague.
Judge Alan Albright eventually denied the requests, though he asked prosecuting attorney Mark Frazier if the defense had "the same records you have" and then told Frazier "They must have anything you could show a jury."
Frazier said he would check to be sure, and Judge Albright told him to do so within 30 days.
Judge Albright then asked both parties if they were prepared to set a trial date. One attorney asked if they could speak to the judge of the record about that date.
The judge later signed a court order setting "jury selection and trial" in District Courtroom No. 1 on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023.
Jury selection starts at 9 a.m.