The milestone in the case was reached on Monday and is a day that the Megan McDonald family thought, at one point, they might never see. After more than two decades, the young woman’s accused killer, Edward Holley, is standing by for the start of his trial.

The 44-year-old was arrested by state police for the 2003 Town of Wallkill murder 20 years later.

Since then, the former Orange County cold case has been riddled with problems, including allegations of bogus AI evidence and a conflict with the district attorney, who removed his office from the case before two special prosecutors were assigned.

Holley is accused of bludgeoning 20-year-old McDonald, who he believed was pregnant with his child, after she broke up with him and was allegedly seeing someone else. Her body was found in a field off Bowser Road in the Town of Wallkill.

His defense has maintained Holley’s innocence since his arrest.

Court officials say decades of media attention surrounding the murder case will likely require hundreds of potential jurors to be screened before 12 jurors can be chosen. The process is expected to take days, at which point the trial will begin.

Attorneys say the trial itself is expected to take up to six weeks. If found guilty, Holley faces up to 25 years to life in prison.