Two Penticton residents jointly charged with second-degree murder will be tried separately.
Brother and sister, Grace and Pier Robotti, are accused in the January 2015 slaying of Roxanne Louie.
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Crown Counsel opposed the application by the two defence lawyers to sever the trial but Supreme Court judge Dev Dley granted the motion.
Counsel for Pier Robotti, Don Skogstad, says the decision means the legal proceedings should move more quickly to a resolution.
Skogstad also says there will be a publication ban on the evidence entered at Pier’s trial, which will be held first, to protect the fairness of his sister’s trial.
The first trial is set for two weeks beginning March 6th.
The second is scheduled for March 20th and is expected to run six weeks.
Both are being held at the Kelowna Law Courts because of security and publicity reasons.