Judge delays trial of ex-officer charged with manslaughter

COLUMBUS, Miss. (AP) - The manslaughter trial of a former Mississippi police officer is being postponed.

Lowndes County Circuit Judge Lee Coleman on Thursday granted a request to delay the trial past Oct. 17. A court official told the Commercial Dispatch that a lawyer requested the delay for medical reasons. Coleman hasn’t yet set a new date.

Ex-officer Canyon Boykin, who is white, is indicted for manslaughter in the October 2015 shooting death of a black man in Columbus.

Boykin says he shot Ricky Ball after the 26-year-old appeared to point a gun at Boykin during a foot chase.

Boykin settled a wrongful termination suit against Columbus in early September. He still faces wrongful death lawsuits.

In May, Coleman ordered the trial moved to south Mississippi’s Tylertown, citing pretrial publicity in Columbus.

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Information from: The Commercial Dispatch, https://www.cdispatch.com