LISBON — A new preliminary hearing date was set at 1 p.m. June 5 for Daniel Clayton Whitley, the man charged with murder for allegedly causing the May 15 shooting death of James Powell Jr.

Whitley, 33, Wilbert Avenue, East Liverpool, appeared in the custody of a deputy sheriff in Columbiana County Municipal Court before Judge Tim McNicol Thursday afternoon for a preliminary hearing, but indicated he’s hiring private counsel.

Defense attorney Zach Miller, an appointed public defender, asked the judge for a continuance to reschedule the preliminary hearing, saying Whitley was in the process of hiring a private defense attorney, Thomas Wills.

When questioned by McNicol, Whitley confirmed that he was waiving the 10-day time frame for holding a preliminary hearing after arrest. He said he was just trying to hire a private attorney.

County Assistant Prosecutor Jennifer Bonish said the state was prepared to go forward, but had no problem with the continuance. Also in the courtroom was county Prosecutor Vito Abruzzino and county Chief Assistant Prosecutor Ryan Weikart and investigators from the prosecutor’s office.

Whitley remains held in the county jail under a $1 million cash or surety bond for the unclassified felony murder charge. According to Weikart, the murder charge carries a possible penalty of 15 years to life in prison.

An affidavit filed by Detective Jon Price of the East Liverpool Police Department in county Municipal Court said police responded to the area of Montrose and Eutaw regarding shots fired and learned that Whitley “did cause the death of victim James Powell by committing an offense of violence,” saying that Whitley “did purposely shoot victim James Powell with a firearm causing his death.”

Powell was 58 years old.

Weikart previously said the victim, who was identified in the affidavit, and the defendant knew each other. He said the high bond was requested due to the nature of the charge and the belief that he was a flight risk. Investigators found him hiding under a porch after searching the area for him following the shooting. In previous published reports, East Liverpool Police Chief John Lane characterized the incident as a lover’s triangle situation, with Whitley allegedly the ex-boyfriend of the victim’s girlfriend.

Police were called at 6:25 p.m. May 15 for a shooting at the Woodland Hills apartments at Eutaw and Montrose streets, with Lane reporting officers found one victim with a gunshot wound to the chest. The suspect had allegedly fled in a vehicle and as officers were trying to locate the suspect, they received a tip that he was behind a house on Avondale Street. He was located hiding under a porch and taken into custody without incident at 9:48 p.m. May 15.

According to a published report earlier this week, police found the suspected gun from the shooting, which investigators identified as a .22-caliber handgun, in a pickup filled with junk and carpet on Chester Street. The gun was reportedly loaded with one round in the chamber.

mgreier@mojonews.com