An Orange County judge agreed to grant a motion to unseal the arrest affidavit in the Michelle Parker murder case.
News 6 filed the motion to unseal the document. The judge did not offer a specific timeframe for when the 46-page affidavit would become public.
Parker, an Orlando mother, has not been seen since November 2011. Her body has never been found. Her ex-fiancé, Dale Smith Jr., is charged with second-degree murder in Parker’s disappearance.
On Monday, the judge also issued a temporary gag order against defense attorney Rajan Joshi, barring him from commenting on the case or the affidavit once it is released. Prosecutors argued Joshi’s previous public statements could taint a jury pool, playing three News 6 stories as evidence.
Orlando police said advancements in digital forensics helped them reexamine data from 2011, revealing new location information and communications between devices. That technology played a key role in building the case against Smith.
[RELATED: Timeline of the disappearance of Michelle Parker]
Smith has maintained his innocence.