Accused deputy killer won't face immediate transfer to state hospital

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The man accused of gunning down a Harris County deputy at a gas station last year will not be immediately transferred to a state hospital, a judge ruled today.

Shannon Miles is charged with capital murder in the August 28 slaying of Officer Darren Goforth in northwest Harris County. He had been ruled incompetent to stand trial and was placed on a waiting list for transfer to a state mental facility -- until Texas Sen. John Whitmire stepped in and tried to expedite the process.

Miles' attorney, Anthony Osso, has been fighting the expedited transfer, and today, a judge ruled in his favor.

"Nobody wants to get this case to trial more than I do," the judge said during a Monday hearing. "No one is more or less important than Mr. Miles to be transferred to the hospital."

The decision keeps Miles in 61st place on the waiting list for inmate transfers.