Over the objections of the prosecutor, Muzzammil S. “Mo” Hassan on Friday was given additional time to secure the money needed to pay for the mental health experts he hopes will help him prove he was emotionally out of control when he decapitated his estranged wife in February.

Erie County Judge Thomas P. Franczyk decried the “glacial pace” of the defense effort but gave defense attorney James P. Harrington until Dec. 7 to report on the progress of the defense tactics.

The judge warned Harrington that he can still preclude this line of defense.

Prosecutor Colleen Curtin Gable complained of deliberate foot-dragging by the defense.

But Harrington insisted that, until an Oct. 13 settlement was reached in the Hassan family estate case, there was a problem with ensuring enough money to pay for the criminal defense.

The the bulk of the estate will go to his four children. Hassan, 44, did not speak during the brief court session that ended at about 10:15 a. m.

Hassan, who has been jailed since he surrendered to police about an hour after the Feb. 12 killing, did not speak in court. Harrington declined to comment as he left court.