Judge Carl B. Anderson signed a gag order June 6 in the first-degree premeditated murder case against Dustin Tyler Smith.

Smith, 24, is charged with killing Justin John Milne on May 29. Smith was apprehended near Milne’s burned vehicle, a mile and a half from Milne’s body near Marion Reservoir.

He is facing a penalty of life imprisonment with no possibility of parole for 25 years.

The order against extrajudicial statements, from court and law enforcement officials is meant to prevent the release of information about evidence, past crimes, or purported confessions that may be ruled inadmissible at trial but could potentially influence a jury’s decision if released in the media.

Smith was in McPherson County Jail in lieu of $400,000 bond. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m. July 19.