An Erie man is scheduled to stand trial in September on homicide and other charges in the fatal stabbing of his ex-girlfriend in September 2023.
Erie County Judge John J. Trucilla set a Sept. 9 trial date during the formal arraignment Friday morning for 45-year-old Gordon D. Kirkland, who is charged in the death of 48-year-old Autumn Bassham on Sept. 19, 2023. Prosecutors said they are seeking a first-degree murder conviction at trial.
Erie police accuse Kirkland of stabbing Bassham multiple times at her residence in the 1100 block of East 28th Street. Authorities said members of Bassham’s family first reported her missing, and her body was later found by a fence at the back of her property.
An Erie police detective testified at Kirkland’s preliminary hearing in late December that members of Bassham’s family were concerned about her disappearance because of a prior incident between Bassham and her onetime boyfriend, Kirkland. Kirkland was charged in 2021 with forcing Bassham from her residence at gunpoint, and he later pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges and was sentenced to two years of probation, according to court records.