Preliminary hearing delayed for two brothers in stabbing case

TULSA, Okla. (AP) – The preliminary hearing for two Oklahoma brothers accused of fatally stabbing five members of their family has been delayed until next month.

The Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office says the hearing for 17-year-old Michael Bever and 19-year-old Robert Bever will be held Feb. 23. The pair had been set for a preliminary hearing on Friday.

Both are charged with five counts of first-degree murder in the July attack that killed their parents and three siblings, the youngest of whom was 5. Michael Bever, who was 16 at the time of the deaths, is challenging the constitutionality of a state law that denies him juvenile or youthful offender status in the case.

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals is set to hear arguments in that case on Jan. 21.