"Greek judge rejects bid to stall trial of sailor"

(AP) DRAMA, Greece -- A Greek sailor accused of strangling and
mutilating his American girlfriend went on trial Saturday after
a court rejected his lawyer's request to postpone the hearing
for further psychiatric evaluation.

George Skiadopoulos, if convicted, faces a maximium penalty of
life imprisonment without parole for the Jan. 8 murder of former
model Julie Scully of Mansfield, N.J.

The partially burned and headless body of Scully, 31, was found
in a swamp near the northern town of Kavala. Her head was not
found.

Presiding Judge Panayota Mandikou said Skiadopoulos might be subjected
to comprehensive psychiatric testing at a later date but refused
to delay the trial. The defendant has undergone only preliminary
assessment. 

The decision is considered a setback for the defense, which had
indicated it would argue that Skiadopoulos is mentally unstable.

Skiadopoulos, a cruise ship petty officer, met Scully on a Caribbean
voyage in 1997. 

Scully, who once posed in a bikini for a New Jersey newspaper,
moved to Greece last December with plans for marriage. She left
her 3-year-old daughter with her ex-husband, Timothy Nist.

The 25-year-old Skiadopoulos had initially reported his girlfriend
missing but confessed to the murder during police questioning
and led investigators to the body.

The Arizona Republic, Sunday, November 28 1999, pg. A21