Sottile Murder Trial Moved To Bartow

A motion for a change of venue has been granted in the case of a Sebring man charged with killing Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. Nicholas Sottile.

Jury selection in the trial of Joshua Lee Altersberger, 21, of Sebring, will start March 16 at the Polk County Courthouse in Bartow, according to Assistant State Attorney Steve Houchin. Evidence will be presented starting from March 23.

The trial will be presided over in Polk County by Judge Michael J. Hunter.

Houchin said the primary allegation in the motion for a change of venue was extensive pretrial publicity.

"There were a number of factors that the judge talked about and considered," he said. "The fact a person knows about the case generally doesn't automatically exclude them if they can put that out of their mind and base their opinion on just the evidence presented."

The charges stem from a Jan. 12, 2007 incident, where authorities say Altersberger shot and killed Sottile, 48, a 24-year FHP veteran, after the trooper stopped a 2003 Toyota Camry driven by the defendant. A passenger, Quintin Jerome Kinder, of Bainbridge, Ga., then fled into a nearby orange grove following the shooting.

Houchin previously said the prosecution will seek the death penalty for the defendant. Altersberger remains in the Highlands County Jail, according to court records.

Kinder will testify in the case. He was charged with trespassing in a cultivated grove following his surrender to authorities and then taken back to Georgia to face a violation of probation charge.

Records from Georgia's Decatur County Jail listed several past criminal charges for Kinder, including theft, burglary and possession of marijuana.

The motion for change of venue will not affect how Houchin prosecutes. He said he will present the same case before a Polk County jury as he would have for a Highlands County one.

"I just think cases should be tried where the crime occurs, and it would be much, much more convenient for me and the witnesses," he said. "So now, we've got to make arrangements to get everybody to Polk County."