The defense attorney representing the man accused of tricking his girlfriend into take abortion pills says he needs more time to build his case.
"Legal, factual, and medical issues... there's a lot going on here," said defense attorney Todd Foster outside of the federal court house in Downtown Tampa.
That was his approach inside the courtroom Thursday as he asked for more time to build a case for his client, 28-year-old John Welden.
Welden is facing federal charges after allegedly getting his ex-girlfriend, Remee Lee, to take an abortion pill, known as Cytotec, which led to a miscarriage and the death of their unborn child.
In federal court today, Foster mentioned the 1973 landmark abortion case, Roe vs Wade.
But outside of the courtroom, he was elusive as to how that would factor into his client's defense.
"You'll have to see in the pleadings. I'm not really allowed to comment about pending matters," Foster said.
He did, however, comment on his client's alleged confession to authorities where investigators say Welden told them he did it.
"The statement was made prior to his arrest... and we just have to examine that to see what if anything we are going to do with it and if there are grounds to try and suppress it, we will," Foster said.
As a result of these complications, a speedy trial isn't likely.
Originally, the trial was set for July but, another pretrial status hearing has now been set for September, with the trial starting at the earliest in October.
A bond hearing is set for next Thursday June 20, because John Welden is still in jail with no bond.
