As searchers continue to comb Spanish Fork Canyon for any trace of Kiplyn Davis, who went missing almost 13 years ago, defense attorneys for the two men charged with her murder made oral arguments Wednesday to sever the two cases and move the trial to another venue.

"You just can't call this a regular homicide case," said Carolyn Howard-Morris, one of Olsen's attorneys. "There's a missing body, unanswered questions and 13 years of publicity. It's impossible to survey every citizen in Utah County to ascertain how they've been affected by it."

State prosecutors argued the growing size and diversity of Utah County make it very likely the court could find plenty of objective jurors, making a change of venue unnecessary.

"Because we're so engrossed in it we think everyone else is too," Prosecutor Sherry Ragan said. "I don't think that's necessarily the case. If we changed venue on every case with similar publicity we'd have to make a lot of changes."

Timmy Brent Olsen and Christopher Neal Jeppson were classmates of Davis at Spanish Fork High School in 1995, and allegedly some of the last people seen with the 15-year-old before her disappearance. Both men have been charged with Davis' murder.

Jeppson's attorney, Scott Williams, brought in a heavy box full of hundreds of newspaper articles published since Davis' disappearance, claiming the community in and around Spanish Fork is too closely connected to the case to find a fair jury.

"It's not a question of whether a news story was heard by everyone, but whether people are more likely to listen to it and identify with it," Williams said. "[Media coverage of the case] is more likely to trigger emotions in this community-the greater Provo and Spanish Fork area-than it is elsewhere."

Williams also argued trying his client alongside Olsen would be prejudicial because the majority of the evidence presented at a preliminary hearing implicated Olsen, not Jeppson. He also alluded to evidence provided by the prosecution during discovery about Olsen that would be beneficial to Jeppson but inadmissible if the two cases weren't severed.

Lead prosecutor Mariane O'Bryant said the nature of the case doesn't justify trying Jeppson separately. In order to sever Jeppson's case the defense must show the two men's cases are antagonistic, or inconsistent with one another.

"It really is just a matter of whether the defendants can be tried fairly or not, and I haven't seen anything from the defense that makes me think that isn't possible," O'Bryant said. "This isn't a case where either is pointing fingers. As far as I can tell counsel has been cooperating."

Judge Lynn W. Davis said he expects to rule on the motions by June 16. The court will reconvene July 8 at 4:00 p.m. for a status conference to review the rulings.