Judge to rule on Fernandez interrogations

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla., July 3 (UPI) -- A Florida judge said she will make a decision Aug. 7 regarding which documents and testimony can be submitted as evidence in the Cristian Fernandez trial.

Fernandez, 13, is being tried as an adult in the death of his younger half-brother in Jacksonville last year when Fernandez was 12. His aggravated child abuse case is scheduled for Aug. 27, and the murder case is set for trial Sept. 10, the Florida Times-Union said Tuesday.

Circuit Judge Mallory Cooper presided over a contentious four-day hearing, which ended Tuesday, to decide what testimony could be admitted into evidence, including a report of a June 20 examination by child psychologist William Meadows, who concluded Fernandez was unlikely to have sufficiently understood his rights when he waived them before he was questioned by Jacksonville police, the newspaper said.