GREGG COUNTY, Texas — A Kilgore man who was recently granted a new punishment hearing in connection with a Hallsville teen's murder will make an court appearance Friday morning.
In 2015, Coby Ray Hudgins, 33, was sentenced to 99 years for the 2013 murder of Kayla Williams, 17. But back in June of this year, the Texas Criminal Court of Appeals granted him a new punishment hearing.
On Friday, he will appear in front of Judge Alfonso Charles in the 124th District Court for a criminal status docket at 9:30 a.m.
During his original sentencing, Hudgins said he did not intend to fire the weapon and did not understand the safety mechanisms of the weapon.
According to a ruling from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, expert testimony found Hudgins' "traumatic history as a sexual assault victim combined with the physical and mental effects of that trauma" could have reduced the length of his sentence. The court determined that Hudgins' defense should have presented expert testimony on Hudgins' mental health.
The appellate court found ineffective assistance of counsel based on the trial record and determined the trial court abused its discretion by deciding that a more lenient sentencing was unlikely.
In his court filing, a mental personality assessment stated that witnessing family violence at an early age and years of forceful sexual assaults over multiple years caused Hudgins to develop PTSD.