LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge ruled Wednesday that the partner of a woman fatally mauled by a dog will be allowed to hear opening statements in the trial of a couple charged in the death, even though she will be a witness.

The defense objected to the presence of Sharon Smith in court for next week's opening statements. Other witnesses will be excluded.

But San Francisco Superior Court Judge James L. Warren rejected their arguments after prosecutor Jim Hammer said that Smith and Diane Whipple had lived together seven years, and Smith wanted to be present.

Marjorie Knoller, 46, and her husband, Robert Noel, 60, have been charged in the January 2001 death of Whipple, 33, who encountered Knoller walking two big dogs in a hallway of their San Francisco apartment building.

Jury selection is expected to conclude Friday.