Former Tulsa Teacher Fires Attorney, Murder Trial Pushed Back

By Lori Fullbright, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- A former Tulsa high school teacher charged with murdering his wife fired his attorney Monday. 

This is the fifth time John Kastner has asked for a new lawyer and each time, it pushes back his trial date.

John Kastner is facing a charge of first degree murder in the death of his wife in 2008.

It's been 18 months since he claimed a home intruder shot and killed his wife, Lori Kastner.

Tulsa County prosecutors say they've never seen anything like what has transpired the past 18 months, with Kastner getting rid of his first public defender, trying to represent himself, getting rid of his second public defender, then having attorney John Byrd step in an offer to do the case for free and now, Kastner getting rid of Byrd. 

12/23/2009 Related story: Tulsa Murder Defendant Plans To Use Insanity Plea

The judge has once again appointed a public defender, which means more delays and heartbreak for Lori Kastner's family who has been at nearly every court hearing.

"For the family, it's a very difficult trauma. I don't think anybody can know unless they've had someone killed, what it's like to come down here and deal with these kinds of delays," said Assistant District Attorney Doug Drummond.

Kastner told police an intruder broke into their home in West Tulsa, shot Lori twice while she was in bed, then shot Kastner in the hand during a struggle with a gun Kastner had bought only days before. 

Records show Kastner lived a web of lies, telling people he was in the Israeli special forces, claiming he was going to donate money to Tulsa's Webster High School and promising his family they were going to Israel on a private jet so Lori could take a job paying her $5 million a year. 

Byrd says Kastner has mental problems and he's not surprised Kastner got upset when Byrd filed an insanity defense.

"Regardless of whether he's legally sane, and I believe he is, he's a schizophrenic, there's no doubt about that and it should be part of any proper defense," said John Byrd, Kastner's former attorney.

Kastner wrote a nine-page letter to the judge, saying he didn't want the insanity defense, because he was innocent.

Kastner's next court date is January 25th, but a trial probably won't happen for several months.

Read the note Kastner sent to the judge. [Editor's Note: court-copied document may be difficult to read]