Wecht Could Learn If He'll Face Second Federal Trial

Former Allegheny County Coroner, Dr. Cyril Wecht, could learn as early as Monday afternoon, whether he will face a second federal trial.

The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear oral arguments on whether the celebrity pathologist should be retried on fraud and theft charges.

A hearing is scheduled before a three-judge panel in Pittsburgh.

Wecht is accused of using his former Allegheny County coroner's office staff to do work that benefited his lucrative private practice. Wecht routinely consulted on high-profile death cases nationwide.

His first trial ended with a hung jury in April.

Jury selection in the retrial of Dr. Cyril Wecht was set to begin back in May, but was delayed after a federal appeals court in Philadelphia issued a stay.

That three-judge panel agreed to postpone the trial to consider an appeal that was filed by Wecht's attorneys.

Wecht's defense contends that a second trial would amount to double jeopardy, violating Wecht's constitutional right not to be tried twice for the same charges.

They also contend that U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab improperly dismissed the deadlocked jury.

That jury listened to nearly two months of testimony and then deliberated for three weeks, failing to reach a verdict on any of the 41 counts against Wecht.

Immediately after Schwab declared a mistrial, prosecutors said they would retry Wecht.

Previous Stories: April 22, 2008: Pittsburgh Media Appeals Judge's Decision To Shield Wecht Jurors' Names April 21, 2008: Wecht Defense Asks Judge To Recuse Himself From Case April 17, 2008: Juror Says Jury In Wecht Trial Split In Favor Of Conviction On 17 Counts April 16, 2008: Local Leaders Team Up To End Prosecution Of Wecht April 8, 2008: Jurors Deadlocked; Judge Declares Mistrial In Wecht Case