New trial date set for man accused of fatally shooting FMPD officer in 2018

A murder trial for the man accused of fatally shooting a Fort Myers police officer more than four years ago has a new date set for next year.

Wisner Desmaret, 33, accused of killing Adam Jobbers-Miller along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Fort Myers on July 21, 2018, will head to trial March 30, court records indicate.

Jobbers-Miller was pursuing Desmaret for the alleged theft of a cell phone when Desmaret grabbed the officer's gun and shot him, according to police. Jobbers-Miller died days later from his injuries.

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The courts have twice cleared Desmaret as competent to stand trial. With first-degree murder among other charges, he faces a possible death penalty upon conviction.

Lee Circuit Judge Robert J. Branning made certain to distinguish the new mental health review is to determine his ability to represent himself, or, in legal terms "pro se," after called his defense attorney Andrew Crawford a "snake" and asked for the court to remove him from Desmaret's case.

During his tenure as Desmaret's attorney in the case, Crawford cited media coverage, including Desmaret's previous arrests, as a factor in a change of venue request.

Branning on Aug. 25 reserved ruling for a change to venue motion for Wisner Desmaret, deeming it premature.

Desmaret sought to move his case from Southwest Florida, arguing that local media coverage would prevent him from receiving a fair trial. The court denied another similar change July 21.

The judge last September pointed out that on at least two prior occasions Desmaret had requested to defend himself, as is his right.

State Attorney Amira Fox agreed that should Desmaret represent himself, her office could proceed with a trial next year.

Desmaret remains at the Lee County Jail in Fort Myers. He's spent most of the past four years at the Collier County Jail in Naples "as a cautionary move," transported to Lee County for key court dates.

Since he was incarcerated at Naples Jail Center, Desmaret had been charged with striking inmates at least four times. The last of those incidents happened Aug. 9.

He's been held in jail since his arrest in 2018. Desmaret has another motions hearing slated for Jan. 11.

Desmaret faces charges including first-degree murder, attempted murder of a second Fort Myers police officer, resisting an officer with violence, robbery, depriving an officer of his means of protection, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, burglary of a conveyance and grand theft.

Jobbers-Miller, 29, was a two-year veteran of the Fort Myers force when he was killed. Before moving to Florida to pursue a career as a police officer, Jobbers-Miller worked as a volunteer firefighter in Wayne, New Jersey.

Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Man accused of killing Fort Myers officer gets new trial date