Calvin Harris Murder Trial To Start Wednesday

A Tioga County man is scheduled to go on trial on a murder charge for the third time. The Calvin Harris trial in Schoharie County Court is to get underway next Wednesday.

Prosecutors will again attempt to prove Harris was responsible for the disappearance of his estranged wife, Michele Harris.

The Spencer woman was last seen in September 2001. Her husband was convicted of murder twice in Tioga County but those verdicts were overturned.

The third trial was shifted to Schoharie County because attorneys for Calvin Harris contended their client could not receive a fair trial in Owego because of the publicity surrounding the case.

Last March, Harris and the couple's four children announced a tip line had been established. They said information provided about what may have happened to Michele Harris would be kept confidential. The tip line number - 607.215.5166 - is still operational.

Members of the defense team have indicated some potentially useful information had been received as a result of the tip line. It's not known whether that information will be used during upcoming trial.

Prosecutors again will face the task of convincing a jury that Calvin Harris killed his wife, even though her body has not been found.