Jason “Blu” Griffith, center, listens to attorney Abel Yanez in District Court on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011. Griffith is accused of killing his girlfriend, “Fantasy” dancer Deborah Flores-Narvaez, then chopping her up and encasing her remains in concrete in two plastic bins.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013 | 5:42 p.m.
The trial for the man accused of killing Luxor dancer Debora Flores Narvaez in 2010 and dismembering her body has been postponed for a fourth time.
Flores Narvaez’s ex-boyfriend Jason Omar “Blu” Griffith, a former dancer in the Mirage’s “Beatles Love” show, was charged with murder in January 2011. He was arrested after Flores Narvaez’s dismembered body was found encased in cement in two plastic tubs in a Las Vegas apartment, according to a Metro Police report. The Clark County Coroner's Office ruled Flores Narvaez's death was the result of asphyxiation due to neck compression.
Clark County District Judge Kathleen Delaney on Monday granted a motion to continue Griffith’s trial, which was slated for July 8, after defense attorneys said their medical expert’s health unexpectedly would prevent him from testifying.
“Nobody saw this coming and it’s pretty legitimate,” said Griffith’s attorney, public defender Jeff Banks.
Unless the expert makes a miraculous recovery, which Banks deemed unlikely, the defense will have to find a new medical expert.
Banks said after talking with prosecutors it was clear the two sides’ experts would differ on Flores Narvaez’s cause of death. Banks, though, would not elaborate.
The trial now is set for Feb. 10, 2014. Delaney scheduled a status check for Sept. 4 to get an update on the hunt for a new expert.
Before Monday, the trial most recently was delayed in August 2012 so the defense could have more time to gather evidence and secure out-of-state witnesses that could speak to Flores Narvaez’s alleged violent tendencies and establish her as the likely aggressor in their relationship. Trial had been postponed on two other occasions, in November 2011 and May 2012.
Flores Narvaez, who was in the Luxor’s “Fantasy” show, was reported missing on Dec. 12, 2010, after she didn’t show for dance practice.
Prior to Flores Narvaez’s death, Metro had responded to three domestic violence reports involving the couple. Two of the reports listed Flores Narvaez as the victim; one listed Griffith as the victim.
Griffith remains at the Clark County Detention Center without bail.
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