LIVINGSTON, Texas (KTRE) - A judge granted five defense motions during a pretrial hearing for Matthew Battise, who is charged in the beating death of a man on the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas' reservation in Polk County.

Battise's defense attorney Bill Morrian confirmed all five motions presented were granted, including motions to limit the state's jury arguments, copy the jury panel's criminal history from the special prosecutor and conduct a discovery inspection.

The trial centers on a lesser-included offense of manslaughter in a 2019 case that ended in mistrial and the eventual departure of Battise's former attorney in 2024.