OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Nicole Montalvo's estranged husband Christopher Otero-Rivera pleaded not guilty to a second-degree murder charge on Tuesday morning.

The arraignment comes after they were both indicted by a grand jury last week. Last week, a grand jury formally charged both of them with Montalvo's death. 

Otero-Rivera faces charges of second-degree murder, abuse of a dead human body, and tampering with evidence, according to court records.

His father Angel Luis Rivera is being charged with abuse of a dead body, accessory after the fact, and tampering with evidence

Otero-Rivera and his father were arrested in October 2019 in connection to Montalvo’s death after her body was found dismembered on Rivera’s property.

The St. Cloud mother's body was found back in October on her in-laws property. She leaves behind her 8-year-old son.

On Tuesday, they appeared before Judge Jon B. Morgan. Things are speeding up for them under State Attorney Brad King, especially due to a looming deadline. 

A deadline is fast approaching  as the speedy trial’s expiration date for Otero-Rivera is in mid April, however, he chose not to waive his right to a speedy trial. 

The attorneys are caught in the middle, trying to stay within the speedy trial timeline but also have enough time to prepare for the trial. 

"The state has essentially used the majority of the 175 days. So the defense is going to need whatever time we can have in order to proceed on some depositions and have some of these motion hearings before the trial. I don’t think we would run into any problems as far as expiration is concerning," said Migdalia Perez, Otero-Rivera's attorney.

Both father and son have their pre-trials set for March 17 and jury trial for March 30. But this may be pushed back, the judge said, if the state and the defense come to an agreement about going past the expiration date. 

Before the indictment, her husband, her father-in-law and mother-in-law faced lesser penalties than a murder charge.

Both father and son are currently behind bars on no bond.

Central Florida Attorney Weighs in on Case

Some wonder why Montalvo’s husband Chris, who Nicole was in the process of divorcing, was indicted on second-degree murder charges.

Spectrum News 13 spoke to former state and federal prosecutor David Haas, who now focuses on criminal defense about the legal matter. He talked about the difference between first and second degree murder in this case.

“They may not be able to establish premeditation, which is what is required for first-degree murder, which is why they’ve probably charged second-degree murder for now,” Haas explained. “They may be able to up that and increase the charge once they get more scientific evidence in.”

State Attorney Aramis Ayala, who has since been removed from the case, said publicly that she advised Osceola County Sheriff Russ Gibson against the “premature” arrests in order to gain more time and build a credible case. Now, the clock is ticking as the expiration date for a speedy trial approaches on April 20.

“It’s difficult to say what is too soon and what is too late in any sort of arrest,” Haas said. “It does create issues for prosecutors and defense attorneys because of the speedy trial clock that begins to run immediately upon an arrest.”

Hass also mentioned it’s going to be harder for the attorneys to get ready on such a short timeline and be effective, especially for the defense team.

“If it’s going to go to trial in April, the lawyers are going to have to drop anything and everything they were working on to be ready for that trial to start,” Haas said. “Whether they’re able to do that or not will weigh into whether or not the defense attorney advices their client, ‘look we can’t be ready, you’ve got too much at stake, you need to waive your right to a speedy trial.’”

Christopher Otero-Rivera and Angel Luis Rivera Both of them have pre-trial hearings set for March 17 and trials set for March 30.