This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

With a ruling from the Utah Supreme Court, the criminal case against a man accused of kidnapping, raping and killing a 6-year-old West Jordan girl in 2012 can resume.

Terry Lee Black's case has been at a standstill in district court for nearly a year and a half as attorneys argued before the Utah Supreme Court over issues concerning the judge who was hearing the case.

Attorneys for 44-year-old Black — charged with aggravated murder, child kidnapping and rape of a child in the death of Sierra Newbold — argued that 3rd District Judge Mark Kouris was biased against their client.

They further argued that Kouris could not serve as both a magistrate in ruling whether there was probable cause for the case to move forward and as judge in other court proceedings, including a competency review.

But in their Friday ruling, the Utah Supreme Court justices ruled that Kouris could "switch between a magistrate role and judicial role in the same case."

This switching of roles happens frequently in Utah court cases, according to courts spokeswoman Nancy Volmer.

"It is not uncommon for judges to preside over both the preliminary hearing and subsequent proceedings in the case," Volmer said, "particularly in rural districts."

The justices did not make rule on whether Kouris' statements during a July 2013 hearing were biased, saying the issue was moot because the judge has since moved to a different courthouse and is no longer presiding over Black's case.

Before the case was put on hold due to the interlocutory appeal, Black's attorneys had asked for a competency evaluation of Black's ability to adequately understand and represent himself through court proceedings.

The accusations of bias followed a July 18, 2013, hearing, at which defense attorneys asked that Black's preliminary hearing be delayed because of possible competency issues.

At that hearing, Kouris questioned why the defense attorneys waited until a week before the five-day preliminary hearing was set to begin to ask for a competency review, since the lawyers at that time had been dealing with the case for about a year.

"I have to tell you, the timing to me is very, very suspicious," the judge said during the July hearing. "You claim it's in good faith; I have no reason to doubt you, except that the timing is a little problematic for me."

In a subsequent court filing, Black's attorneys described Kouris' words during the hearing as "hostile, demeaning and humiliating and disparaged the integrity and ethics of counsel for the defendant."

According to charging documents, Black allegedly abducted Sierra on June 26, 2012, from her West Jordan house — about a block from his own home — and beat, raped and strangled her before throwing her into a nearby canal, where she drowned.

Three days later, Black was arrested on suspicion of an unrelated bank robbery.

When he was taken into custody, investigators noticed soot and debris on his clothing and hands that was similar to the materials in a field where Sierra's clothes were found.

Lab results later showed that Black's DNA matched DNA found on Sierra's body, prosecutors said.

Black has sent letters to The Salt Lake Tribune from jail in which he has maintained his innocence. He said police were looking for someone to pin Sierra Newbold's murder on, and he was an easy target who got caught up in the investigation.

Black's case has been sent back to the district court for further proceedings, but no court dates had been set as of Monday.

Twitter: @jm_miller