The trial of an alleged California serial killer could cost taxpayers $20 million.

A Sacramento County official said Wednesday the county is asking the state to help pay.

Suspect Joseph DeAngelo is scheduled to appear in court Thursday for a routine proceeding. The trial is months away from beginning.

“While the current estimate is more than $20 million, it is impossible at this point to accurately estimate all costs. We anticipate the complexities of the case, including 40 years of evidence, to greatly affect the final cost,” said Natasha Drane of the county’s office of Governmental Relations and Legislation.

The 73-year-old DeAngelo faces 26 charges related to 13 murders and 13 rapes across six counties in the 1970s and 80s. Authorities said in April that his arrest brought an end to one of California’s most frustrating cold cases.

In the decades following, the search for a suspect known by nicknames such as the Golden State Killer and the East Area Rapist frustrated investigators and left victims’ families without answers. Finally in early 2018 investigators used DNA and a genealogical website to identify and arrest DeAngelo as the alleged killer. He has not entered a plea.

Since the statute of limitations has passed on bringing rape cases, prosecutors charged him with 13 kidnapping-related charges. He is suspected of committing 13 murders and more than 50 rapes.

The estimated $20 million includes DeAngelo’s prosecution and defense.

He is currently being represented by a public defender.

Source: The Associated Press & The State