Michael Blagg to be re-tried in Jefferson County

The re-trial of a man accused of killing his wife in Mesa County in 2001 is moving to the Front Range.

The Daily Sentinel reports that Chief Judge David Bottger ruled Tuesday that Michael Blagg will be tried in Jefferson County.

Blagg was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison in the shooting death of his wife, Jennifer Blagg. He won a new trial in 2014 after the judge determined that a juror concealed her experience with domestic violence in order to serve on the jury.

Lawyers on both sides agree that it would be difficult to seat a jury in Grand Junction after 15 years of publicity on the case.