LEE COUNTY, Fla. (WINK) \u2014 The trial for a teenager accused of killing a 15-year-old Cape Coral girl in March 2024 got off to a rocky start.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The morning began with jury selection for the five-day trial, but ended with the judge releasing the panel of potential jurors because of ‘commotion’ in the hallway.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“The reason the jury panel had to be released was because there was an issue with a commotion happening outside of this courtroom where words were exchanged between both the families,” Thompson said. “That is not acceptable and I’m not going to allow that during this trial.”<\/p>\n
He ultimately decided to let that panel of potential jurors go.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors say 18-year-old Thomas Stein is facing life in prison. Stein is accused of killing 15-year-old Kayla Rincon Miller in March 2024.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Kayla Rincon-Miller. CREDIT: Rincon-Miller family<\/p>\n
Cape Coral police say Kayla and her friends were walking to a McDonald’s in Cape Coral after a movie when she was shot and killed.<\/p>\n
Stein was arrested just days later. A month after Kayla was killed, a second teenager was arrested\u2014Christopher Horne Jr. Horne took a plea deal in September. He pleaded no contest and agreed to testify against Stein.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“There are rules of decorum for court and inside the courthouse as well,” Thompson said. “I expect that those rules will be followed.”<\/p>\n
Stein is also charged with three counts of attempted robbery with a firearm.<\/p>\n
A new panel of potential jurors will go through the selection process on Tuesday, and prosecutors say they still expect to wrap up on Friday.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
One of the teenagers accused of being involved in the shooting death of 15-year-old Kayla Rincon-Miller faces trial for first-degree murder more than two years after she was gunned down.<\/p>\n
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