MONROE — Years after the murder of an infant shocked the community, hearings are underway ahead of the suspected teen killer's upcoming trial. 

Logan Kruckenberg-Anderson has been in Green County jail ever since the January, 2021 murder of the newborn, whom he is accused of shooting near Albany and leaving the child in the snow. Kruckenberg-Anderson was 16 when he allegedly killed the infant that he fathered with a local teen. 

He stands accused of one count of first-degree intentional homicide and one count of transporting, concealing, or burying the child's body. 

The mother was not charged, but the teen parents had made every effort to conceal the pregnancy.

The trial has been delayed by back-and-forth rulings and appeals largely centered around the defendant's statements to police following the murder.

An appeals court in August agreed to throw out some parts of a confession to police but also agreed to include portions of a previously excluded, initial confession by the defendant at the Brodhead Police Department. 

During the ordeal, Kruckenberg-Anderson was persuaded he had to confess so the child could be "properly buried" at a pivotal moment in the series of interrogations. The appellate judges upheld the trial court's decision that all confessions made following that remark and within the contested time period were inadmissible.

That decision was promptly appealed by District Attorney Craig Nolen.

Last week a motion for a change of venue was filed — seeking to move the case from Green County — and another evidentiary hearing was held last Monday before Circuit Judge Jane Bucher. A jury trial is scheduled to start in October. Rulings are pending on those, according to court records.

Kruckenberg-Anderson first claimed to have paid someone $60 to take the baby to an adoption agency in Madison. But after intense questioning by investigators, he allegedly revealed that he had placed the infant in a backpack and taken her to a wooded area in the village of Albany. That is where he allegedly shot her in the head with a .22 caliber weapon.

He also is charged with felony moving, burying or hiding a corpse. He faces a maximum possible sentence of life in prison for the crime.

The killing helped lead state officials to pass a Safe Haven Laws bill aimed at informing Wisconsin teenagers of their options for safely leaving infants without legal action.