Lee Franck
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — The murder trial of Lee Franck, the man accused of killing Lyle Leith in February of 2018, will move forward with an April 18th start date.
Franck was in a Marathon County courtroom on Monday where Judge Gregory Strasser ordered a 70-person jury pool to be assembled with two alternates. Both sides also exchanged information regarding potential witnesses and the length of the trial.
Strasser also set a deadline of April 13th for the final witness list to be submitted to the court by the state.
The trial is currently set to run from April 18th through May 6th.
Franck is accused of killing Leith in his Wausau home following an argument over Franck’s relationship with Leith’s daughter. Investigators reportedly found evidence connecting Franck to the killing at his home in Niagara, including a pipe that may have been used to beat Leith.
Franck is said to have made several threatening statements towards both Leith and his family, saying things like “you will all pay” and “I hope your family dies.”
If found guilty for the count of first-degree intentional homicide the 60-year-old faces a mandatory life sentence with only the possibility of parole. He does face additional counts of disorderly conduct as well, which also carry domestic abuse modifiers.
The trial had originally been scheduled for the Spring of 2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic when the state Supreme Court ordered all jury trials to be delayed as a matter of public health.
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