The trial for two men accused of killing Caitlyn Kaufman is set for Jan. 23. The 26-year-old was shot Dec. 3, 2020, as she was driving to work at St. Thomas West Hospital in Tennessee. Submitted Photo

The judge presiding over the Caitlyn Kaufman murder trial in Tennessee did not immediately rule on a series of pretrial motions presented in two days of hearings.

Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County Court Judge Angelita Blackshear Dalton delayed ruling on the various motions that were argued in a hearing that began Tuesday, Nov. 15, and was continued to Thursday, Nov. 17.

James Cowan, 29, and Devaunte Hill, 23, both of Tennessee, are facing first-degree murder charges in the Dec. 3, 2020, shooting death of Kaufman, a Chicora native who was 26 years old. The jury trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 23.

Kaufman’s parents Rick and Diane Kaufman attended the hearing. Rick Kaufman was removed from the courtroom Tuesday after lunging at the defendants as they were led into the courtroom in handcuffs. He was allowed to return for the rest of the hearing.

Kaufman was shot while she was driving to St. Thomas West Hospital, where she worked as a nurse in the intensive care unit, in a possible road rage incident.

In a hearing in January, a witness and investigators said Kaufman may have cut off the defendants' car in traffic as they traveled along Interstate 440 in Nashville. Investigators said her car was struck by at least six bullets and her rear driver's side window was shot out. She died at the scene.

Ballistic tests on a gun recovered from a witness's vehicle confirmed that it matched shell casings found on Interstate 440 where Kaufman was shot.

Cellphone data was used to track Kaufman's route and speed on the evening of Dec. 3.

That data showed she kept a steady speed of 70 mph until 6:08, when she began to slow. Detectives believe that coincides with the start of the shooting, according to testimony from the January hearing.

Investigators testified that data pulled from a phone believed to be Hill's showed repeated online searches using terms like “Nashville shooting today.”

Police searched for almost two hours before they discovered Kaufman's body, according to testimony.