Pike County murders: Wagner family patriarch learns trial date
The patriarch of the Wagner family has learned when his trial will start.
The trial of George “Billy” Wagner III is scheduled to begin May 6, 2024, and should last roughly eight weeks, according to our news partners at WCPO.
Wanger along with his wife and two sons are accused of shooting and killing eight members of the Rhoden and Gilley families “execution-style.”
>> RELATED: Pike County Murders: George Wagner IV gets life without parole for 2016 killings
Those who were found dead in their four homes or nearby on April 22, 2016, include: Christopher Rhoden Sr., 40, Dana Rhoden, 37, Hannah “Hazel” Gilley, 20, Christopher Rhoden Jr., 16, Clarence “Frankie” Rhoden, 20, Gary Rhoden, 37, Hanna May Rhoden, 19, and Kenneth Rhoden, 44.
Wagner has been in prison since his arrest in November 2018.
During his hearing Wednesday, Wagner’s defense attorney requested his trial be moved out of Pike County due to a possibly biased jury.
Judge Robert Alan Corbin said he plans to announce his decision on the motion “fairly soon”, according to WCPO.
In December 2022 Wagner’s son, George Wagner IV, was sentenced to life in prison without parole for all eight counts of aggravated murder he was convicted of.
