WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — The capital murder trial of a man charged with strangling his pregnant girlfriend, subsequently killing their unborn child in the process, which was set to begin in just one week has been delayed.

Paul Raymond Chandler, 21, of Wichita Falls, stands accused of fatally strangling his girlfriend, Kaycee Wofford, 19, of Wichita Falls, who was 32 weeks pregnant with his child. As a result of Wofford’s death, the unborn child died as well.

Chandler, who was charged with capital murder of multiple persons, was set to face a judge and jury beginning on Monday, April 1, 2024, however, 89th District Court Judge Charles Barnard granted a defense motion for a continuance, delaying the start of the trial.

According to the defense’s motion, filed by David Bost, Chief Public Defender in Wichita County, as the prosecution was preparing for trial, they discovered evidence that the defense called “relevant to possible affirmative defenses in this case.”

Chandler’s defense said in the motion that the state provided the evidence as soon as they received it, at which time the defense requested that an expert be appointed on behalf of the defense to review the evidence, and the court granted that request.

The defense said in the motion for a continuance that they didn’t believe that an appropriate amount of time would be given to the defense’s expert if the trial were still set to begin April 1.

As of the publication of this story, a new trial date has not been set.

The charge against Chandler came after police responded to a 911 call in June 2022 in which a male, later identified as Chandler, said his wife was blue in the face and he believed was beyond help.

According to the affidavit, responders found Wofford lying on her back next to an air mattress in the two-story home in the 1600 block of Deer Park Way. They said it appeared she had been deceased for several hours.

Police said someone who resided at the home with Chandler and Wofford told police that between 12:30 and 2 a.m., she was awakened by a loud thud and heard Wofford say “Stop,” and then everything was quiet. She said nothing else was heard the rest of the night.

Police said Chandler first denied there had been an argument and that he and Wofford just watched a movie and fell asleep around 1 a.m. Later he admitted there had been an argument, but it never got physical.

According to the affidavit, Chandler told police that before he and Wofford fell asleep they had what he described as “rough sex” which included him putting his hand on her throat and pushing down.

An autopsy was conducted on Wofford that concluded she had been strangled by her throat and by chest compression. The autopsy also found trauma on her head which would not have been fatal but indicated significant signs she was beaten.

The medical examiner said the unborn female child only died because her mother had died, and would have been a healthy baby if born.