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Man to argue "professional" killed parents

Posted: $util.date("h:mm a MMM d, yyyy",$story.contentLiveDate,$timeZone)
Reporter: AP

LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) -- A man accused of killing his parents at their western Wisconsin home plans to argue at his trial that a "professional" fatally shot them.

Prosecutors claim Eric Koula, a struggling West Salem day trader, killed Dennis and Merna Koula's in their town of Barre home in May 2010 for the inheritance. He denies a role in the killings.

Koula's attorney Keith Belzer says a "plethora of circumstantial evidence" recovered from the parents' home suggests a trained and organized killer was responsible for their deaths.

Attorneys returned to court Friday to hash out some issues before his 20-day trial begins June 4 in La Crosse County.

Eric Koula is expected to testify at the trial.

A motion hearing is set for May 30.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)