Court Asked to Toss Minnesota Man’s Murder Conviction

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - The defense wants a judge to dismiss the murder conviction of a Minnesota man convicted of killing his wife, whose body was found in the Mississippi River months after she disappeared.

An attorney for Jeffery Trevino claims an insufficient legal basis for the jury's verdict this month. Trevino was convicted Oct. 2 of killing his wife, 30-year-old Kira Steger, after a two-week trial. Reports say his attorney filed a motion Wednesday arguing that Trevino should be acquitted because the injuries to Steger rose to the level of third-degree assault, not murder.
 
Prosecutors told jurors that Trevino killed Steger because she was having an affair and wanted to leave their marriage.

Steger was last seen alive Feb. 21. Her body was recovered from the Mississippi in May.