The Louisiana judge who granted C-Murder a new trial in his second-degree murder case announced Tuesday ( November 18) that she will no longer be presiding over the case and has set a January 2009 date for the rapper's re-trial.

C- Murder, whose real name is Corey Miller, has been awaiting retrial on a second-degree murder charge in the 2002 killing of sixteen year old Steve Thomas, who was shot in the chest during a brawl in the defunct Platinum Club in Louisiana.

The rapper has been under house arrest since he was released on bond in March 2006, after Sassone overturned his murder conviction and accepted his request for a new trial.

The re-trial was expected to take place this year but has been pushed back repeatedly because of wrangling between prosecutors and the defense attorneys over witnesses' backgrounds.

According to The Times Picayune,  Sassone lost her bid for re-election on the District Court bench and will  be leaving two weeks before C-Murder's  January 12 hearing.

During her run for re-election, Sassone was harshly criticized  by her opponent Ellen Kovach for giving C-Murder preferential treatment.

Kovach,who defeated Sassone in the Nov. 4 runoff , has chosen not to preside over C-Murder's case due to her criticism.

A new judge is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.