Trial date set for Piazza double homicide

The trial for those charged in last summer's double homicide at the Piazza at Schmidts in Northern Liberties has been set for November 2011.

Attorneys on both sides tried to schedule an earlier date, but the many defendants and lawyers involved meant conflicts were unavoidable. The date was set Thursday morning.

Eight people have been arrested in connection with the June 26, 2009, slaying of Rian Thal and Timothy Gilmore, including the man accused of masterminding the killings and a woman who is expected to plead guilty to helping the gunmen stake out the victims.

Thal and Gilmore were gunned down outside Thal's apartment in the upscale Piazza.

Police, who have described Thal as a drug dealer and Gilmore as her accomplice, say the deaths resulted from a drug robbery gone bad. They say three gunmen hid in the stairwell near Thal's apartment, ambushed her and Gilmore, and fled after shooting them. Police said they later found eight pounds of cocaine and more than $110,000 in cash in Thal's apartment.

Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for the three alleged gunmen in the case. Will "Pooh" Hook, the alleged mastermind, faces life in prison.

Thal, 34, worked as a local party promoter; Gilmore, 40, was a former Detroit firefighter who lived in Ohio.