DETROIT – A power outage in downtown Detroit has interrupted the trial against Bob Bashara.
On Tuesday morning, moments after one of the charges against Bashara was dismissed, lights began to flicker at the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice. The power went out at the building. Power has been restored, but the courthouse is closed for the rest of the day.
More than a dozen cases were taking place and more than 1,000 people had to be evacuated from the building within 15-20 minutes.
Closing arguments are scheduled for next week in the Bashara trial. Bob Bashara is charged with arranging his wife's murder in 2012.
The former Rotary Club president is accused of getting a handyman to kill his wife, Jane Bashara of Grosse Pointe Park. Prosecutors called their final witness on Monday. They say Bob Bashara wanted to clear the way for relationships with other women.
Bashara is in prison for trying to have handyman Joe Gentz killed. Gentz is in prison after pleading guilty to strangling Jane Bashara.
The case returns Tuesday to Wayne County Circuit Court in Detroit on Tuesday. Defense witnesses are expected to be called. Closing arguments are planned for next Monday, with each side getting two hours.
The trial started in October.