A state appeals court may decide the fate of a 911 recording connected to a 10-year-old boy accused of killing his New Mexico father.
District Judge George Eichwald decided Friday to send the issue of the 911 recording to the appeals court after a motion from boy's attorney, William Cooley. That court may or may not opt to hear the appeal, but the move delays the case that was scheduled to begin Monday with jury selection.
Prosecutors say the 10-year-old put a gun to the head of 42-year-old Byron Hilburn and killed him at their Belen home in 2009.
Cooley says the father was abusive.
The boy is now 14 and living in Oklahoma.
Experts say the boy is just one of a handful of very young children in the nation's history to face first-degree murder.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.