Trial for woman charged with 2024 murder of Mead father postponed, defense still claims 'that won't be enough time'

A judge postponed trial by a week on Monday for the woman charged with stabbing and shooting her ex-boyfriend to death over a custody battle at his Mead home in 2024.

Cynthia Khaleel's attorneys, who requested the extra time on April 17, claim an extra week is not enough time to build a solid defense. The trial has been rescheduled over 10 times.

Justin Daniel, 40, called police in the early hours of April 13, 2024, to report that his ex-girlfriend, Khaleel, then 37, came to his house in violation of a no-contact order he had against her.

In court documents from a custody battle over the pair's shared 3-year-old daughter, Daniel alleged that Khaleel had stalked him and verbally abused his teenage daughter. He was awarded full custody in March 2024.

When deputies arrived at Daniel's house after his call, they found him dead with 48 stab wounds and three gunshot wounds. Daniel's teen daughter was home at the time, fleeing to a neighbor's house, The Spokesman-Review reported previously. Witnesses in court documents described Khaleel as "furious" about the custody ruling.

Khaleel was arrested and charged with first-degree aggravated murder, among other charges. If convicted, she will serve life in prison without possibility of parole under Washington law.

Separate from the murder of Daniel, Khaleel was acquitted of murdering her 5-year-old adopted nephew in 2018. She adopted the boy, Gary Blanton III, after her brother was killed by a sex-offender-hunter in 2012.

Defense attorneys Lindsey Wheat and Stephanie Cady submitted a motion for continuance in April, claiming that they would be unable to give "a competent and zealous defense" for Khaleel due to their high case loads and the continual inflow of evidence. Daniel's mother and a medical expert were added as witnesses just the week prior, the motion alleged.

Last week, CourtTV reported that Cady refused to discuss motions in the case if not granted more time, saying repeatedly that she "is ineffective."

Judge Jacqueline High-Edward said at the time that Cady was being in contempt of the court in her actions.

On Monday, when Khaleel's trial was scheduled to start, High-Edward granted a continuance, pushing it to May 4. High-Edward said she didn't understand why timing was an issue for the attorneys.

"I know that they're saying case limits - I appreciate that and I think I've said that before, that I appreciate that idea," she said. "But this court cannot be controlled by case limits when balancing the rights of the victim, the rights of the defendant, the rights of the State to present their case and the administration of justice in a timely manner, which is this board's responsibility to do.

Cady said the defense will still not have enough time to parse through the evidence, and that they may need to request another continuance.

"We appreciate that you're giving us a week," she said. "But that won't be enough time."

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