Chattanooga Police continue to search for Christopher Padgett

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF)- Chattanooga Police continue to search for Christopher Padgett, that’s after he cut off his ankle monitor to avoid standing trial this afternoon.

It’s the third day for Padgett’s murder trial, but he’s nowhere to be found.

And according to the judge, the case will go on tomorrow morning as scheduled, with our without him.

“The court very respectfully will deny the motion for mistrial,” said Judge Greenholtz

The 22-year-old Christopher Padgett’s absence in the courtroom makes no difference in his case, and because Padgett was under no obligation to testify on his own behalf, the judge denied the motion for a mistrial.

“We will resume trial tomorrow, at nine o’clock. If Mr. Padgett is back we will proceed with him, if he’s not we will proceed without him.”

Witnesses claim Padgett used a pair of scissors to cut off his GPS ankle monitor, the night before he was due back in court for the third day in a row.

Padgett is facing a first-degree murder charge, related to the death of a taxi cab driver back in 2012.

Padgett was 18 at the time, and according to Prosecutors, he called a cab, got into the car, and shot the driver in the back of the head before taking off with the driver’s money.

“Mr. Padgett of course did not give the court the opportunity to let them know that he would be away.”

The trial will continue tomorrow morning.

The jury will see that Padgett is missing, but his attorney asks that they not be told how or why he didn’t show up for court this morning, to avoid any bias that may add to their verdict in the overall case.

Padgett has faced these charges for more than four years now, but made bond in 2015. And when he violated his conditions, authorities put him back in jail on a 350-thousand dollar bond, which he just recently paid last week.