A Spring Valley woman charged in a 2023 shooting death in Ottawa will not stand trial this month – and the window for her to stand trial this year is closing fast.

Chastity Furar, 23, also listed in Ottawa, appeared Friday in La Salle County Circuit Court for a final pretrial conference on the first-degree murder charge, which was filed after Eric Clements was shot outside his Ottawa home.

Jury selection was scheduled to begin Sept. 29. However, Ottawa defense attorney Karen Donnelly asked the judge on Friday to strike trial dates and instead schedule a hearing on several defense motions.

According to Donnelly’s filings, Furar was illegally questioned after she requested legal counsel. Donnelly also alleged that police violated Furar’s rights when collecting surveillance and during the traffic stop when Furar was taken into custody.

Those issues must be resolved before trial, so Circuit Judge Michelle A. Vescogni scheduled a Nov. 7 motion hearing. Trial dates will be set later.

Furar is not charged with firing the shot that struck and killed Clements. Instead, she is charged as an accessory for allegedly supplying the weapon to murder suspect Nicolaus Phillips and for driving Phillips to and from the scene June 5, 2023.

The sentencing range for murder is 20 to 60 years with no possibility of probation. If convicted, both suspects would face extended prison terms because a firearm was used to kill Clements.

Phillips recently waived his right to a jury trial. He will next appear Oct. 15 for a status hearing in a separate courtroom. His bench trial is not yet scheduled.

Friday’s postponement means it is now possible that neither case will go to trial by the end of the year. Lining up witnesses becomes challenging as the holidays approach, and scheduled judicial vacations will further limit autumn dates.