SOUTH JERSEY

Retrial set for SJ man accused of killing Etan Patz in 1979

Associated Press
In this Nov. 15, 2012, file photo, Pedro Hernandez appears in Manhattan criminal court in New York.  A retrial will begin after Labor Day for Hernandez, who is accused of killing Etan Patz in 1979.

NEW YORK - A retrial for a South Jersey man accused of killing 6-year-old Etan Patz (AY’-tahn payts) in 1979 will begin in New York City after Labor Day.

The New York Times reports jury selection is expected to start Sept. 6 or 7 in the trial of Maple Shade resident Pedro Hernandez.

Etan vanished on his way to school in New York City. He became one of the first missing children pictured on milk cartons. Etan was declared dead in 2001.

RELATED: 35 years after Etan Patz vanished, boy's murder trial opens

The defense says Hernandez has low intelligence and falsely confessed because of a personality disorder. His May 2015 trial ended in a hung jury.

Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley set the new trial schedule Tuesday. He’s expected to rule on evidence in the case by July 11.

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Information from: The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com