SCOTTSVILLE — A murder case against two men in Allen County that has pending for the past six years was prolonged by another three months Tuesday.

Allen Circuit Court Judge Mark Thurmond allowed for the continuance of the trials of Derek Lucas and Rylan Wiles from the previously scheduled date of May 12 to Aug. 8.

Lucas, 26, of Jamestown, Indiana and Wiles 23, of Brownsburg, Indiana, face charges of murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and tampering with physical evidence in connection with the death of Justin Wix, 47, who was shot May 7, 2019, at his Scottsville home on Stinson Lane.

The previously agreed upon May 12 trial date conflicted with the caseload of new Allen County Commonwealth’s Attorney Mike Lindsey, who took office Jan. 6 following his election last year, prompting the rescheduling by Thurmond.

The judge also set a March 14 deadline for Lindsey to file responses to a number of pending defense motions, and expressed a desire to hold firm to the new trial schedule.

“I know I’ve said this, but I do not intend to come off that trial date,” Thurmond said.

Numerous delays have caused the lifespan of the case to stretch out into six years.

The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily disrupted proceedings, but most of the continuances have been related to motions filed by a third co-defendant, Sevonte Sumpter-Bey.

In 2021, Sumpter-Bey entered a guilty plea, but then requested to withdraw it, claiming that his mental condition at the time prevented him from having the competency to plead guilty.

A doctor who evaluated Sumpter-Bey determined that he could not have given a knowing and voluntary guilty plea due to his mental condition at the time, and Sumpter-Bey was allowed to withdraw his plea.

After being found competent in 2023 by a judge, Sumpter-Bey pleaded guilty to charges of complicity to first-degree manslaughter, complicity to second-degree robbery and complicity to second-degree burglary, and is scheduled to be sentenced later this year.

Lucas’s attorney, Steve Romines, has filed a motion to allow an expert witness to testify about Sumpter-Bey’s mental health evaluation and his claims of mental illness, and whether they may affect Sumpter-Bey’s credibility as a witness in his accusations against Lucas.

Thurmond on Tuesday also granted a request from Romines for Lucas to move to another address in the same Indiana city where he currently lives.

Lucas is currently out on bond while under electronic monitoring.

The Kentucky State Police investigated Wix’s death, with KSP Post 3 receiving a tip from someone who reported overhearing the co-defendants boast about the incident, according to prior testimony.

Lucas and Wiles declined to give statements to police, but Sumpter-Bey incriminated himself and the two other men during a police interview, according to testimony from a 2019 hearing in Allen District Court.