COEUR d'ALENE — A judge ruled Friday that challenging the use of the death penalty in the case of the man accused of murdering Coeur d'Alene Police Sgt. Greg Moore is more appropriately done after a successful conviction.

Jonathan Renfro, the 26-year-old Rathdrum resident accused of killing Moore in a Coeur d'Alene neighborhood on May 5, 2015, faces the death penalty if found guilty. Renfro's attorneys filed a motion asking Kootenai County District Court Judge Lansing Haynes to reconsider a previous decision denying the preclusion of the death penalty because of ineffective legal representation.

"It's an evolving area of law but one most appropriately dealt with in a post-conviction setting," Haynes said of the use of the death penalty.

The motion up for reconsideration was the seventh attempt by public defenders to take the death penalty off the table.

Kootenai County Public Defender Linda Paine asked Haynes to consider there are three other active death penalty cases in Idaho now. There is also, Paine added, the potential for two more death penalty cases in Kootenai County since charges of first degree murder have been filed.

The Kootenai County Prosecutor's Office has not announced if it intends to seek the death penalty in either case.

Paine said the motion was filed to argue that there is a presumption of ineffective representation because of the case load and inadequate funding for both the Kootenai County Public Defenders Office and public defense offices throughout the state.

In a brief reply to Paine's argument, Kootenai County Deputy Prosecutor David Robbins told Haynes that, although there are other death penalty cases in Idaho and up to two more that could be added in Kootenai County, the defense does not have the legal standing to challenge yet-to-be charged cases or cases outside its jurisdiction.

When issuing his ruling on the motion, Haynes told the defense team he appreciated their refocus of presumption of ineffectiveness, rather than the assumption of ineffectiveness that was previously argued and also denied. Haynes added that he was not only going to not adopt conclusions made in the defense's request, he was going to make a specific finding as well.

"The defense has been vigorous, thorough and exhausting in identifying potential issues," Haynes said. "This court is finding, so far, that the defense has been extremely effective."

A pre-trial conference in the case is scheduled for March 23.