Attorneys for a Cheyenne man charged with second-degree murder or in the alternative voluntary manslaughter have been given until Dec. 13 to file an explanation as to why the case shouldn't be bound over to Laramie County District Court.

Twenty-one-year-old Cody Hess appeared before Circuit Court Judge Denise Nau this (Wednesday) afternoon.

Hess is accused of shooting and killing his roommate, 35-year-old Michael Robbins, during the early morning hours of Nov. 14.

Hess' attorney, Devon Petersen, asked the court not to bind over the second-degree murder count, saying, "There hasn't been any evidence presented today that Hess had any malice towards Robbins."

Petersen also argued against the voluntary manslaughter charge, saying the shooting was not "a sudden heat of passion."

"I agree that there's no malice," said Nau, but "something happened, someone is dead."

Because Hess was charged in the alternative, Nau didn't believe she could dismiss the second-degree murder count and gave attorneys a week to try to find legal precedent pertaining to the case.

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