Despite the objections of Natrona County's district attorney, the state will pay for the appeal of a Casper man convicted of murdering his former wife's friend with a shotgun.

An Albany County district judge has granted Edward Taylor's request for a taxpayer-funded appeal, according to a document filed in Natrona County District Court.

In an unusual move, District Attorney Michael Blonigen filed an objection to the request on March 31, arguing that Taylor could "clearly pay for the services of the Public Defender."

Blonigen cited Taylor's own testimony during his October murder trial, where he admitted removing more than $40,000 from a local bank sometime before the killing. Taylor declined to say where it was because he didn't want others to get it.

In Taylor's application for court-appointed counsel, he indicated he has $225 in the bank and $170 in a jail account, according to court records.

In October, a jury convicted Taylor of first-degree murder and a judge sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Taylor has admitted to killing Mark Fisher, a man his former wife had been intimate with, with a 12-gauge shotgun in April 2007.

During his trial, Taylor's attorneys contended the killing was done in the heat of passion, and asked the jury to convict him of manslaughter. Prosecutors argued Taylor, weeks after learning of his wife's infidelity, set out to kill Fisher.

Reach Joshua Wolfson at (307) 266-0582 or at josh.wolfson@trib.com.