ST. JOSEPH — New evidence regarding a Niles Township murder has pushed back the jury trial for the man accused of the crime.

During a status conference Monday morning at the Berrien County Courthouse in St. Joseph, John Benton Lewis, 44, appeared in a green prison jump suit before Judge Donna Howard. Chief Public Defender Carl Macpherson, who is representing Lewis, asked Howard to adjourn the jury trial, which initially had been scheduled for May 1.

Macpherson said he needed more time to investigate further information on the case.

“The reason being, we have received discovery last Thursday, and we received further discovery today,” Macpherson said. “All of those items will need further investigation. We cannot do that by the May 1.”

Howard asked Berrien County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jerry Vigansky whether the new information discovered would impact the prosecution’s preparedness for trial.

Vigansky said he was prepared to proceed with the trial and he concurred with the defense’s request to investigate the new material in the case.

“I understand the importance of the information that they did receive,” Vigansky said.

There was no indication by either the defense or prosecutor about what this new information contains.

Howard agreed to grant the defense the request to adjourn the trial so that further investigation on the new information could proceed.

Howard scheduled Lewis’ jury trial to begin Aug. 14, almost a year to the day when his wife, Carla Lewis, was fatally shot on Aug. 13, 2017. The trial is expected to last about two weeks and is anticipated to wrap up Aug. 24.

Lewis is being charged with first-degree pre-meditated murder, delivering and manufacturing marijuana, and a supplemental charge.

The charges stem from a tragedy that unfolded Sunday, Aug. 13, when police responded to a call of a shooting at 1429 Lawndale Ave. Police entered the home which belonged to John and Carla Lewis. In a basement room used to grow medical marijuana plants, police found Carla, who had allegedly been shot in the head and John, who was lying nearby her body uninjured, according to police testimony in a preliminary exam hearing.

John was arrested at the scene because he violated medical marijuana laws, according to police. On Sept. 26, 2017, during a preliminary exam, Howard ruled that witness testimony provided probable cause to try John Lewis for the crime.

John has pleaded not guilty to the crimes. He is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

John is next expected to appear in court at 8:30 a.m. July 16 for a continued case conference and a status conference Aug. 6.