LAVAL - The preliminary hearing for a Laval mother accused of killing her two daughters has been postponed while her husband decides if he will testify against her.

Adele Sorella, 45, is charged with the first-degree murders of her children, Sabrina and Amanda.

Sorella is married to a suspected drug kingpin, Giuseppe De Vito.

He was on the run at the time of the killings, but his arrest a few months ago could spell trouble for the accused mother.

In court Friday, the prosecution announced its intention to call Sorella's husband as a witness, which prompted the judge to delay the hearing.

Under Canadian law spouses cannot be forced to testify against each other in a court of law, and even though De Vito and Sorella had not seen each other since 2006, they are still married.

De Vito's lawyer brought that point up in court, and the judge agreed that De Vito should be given time to consider his options.

"Basically the law says the spouse or the husband is not..you cannot bring him in court against the other one, but there is some exceptions and that's where he stands," said De Vito's lawyer, Daniel Rock.

But De Vito is in a sticky situation himself.

Reputed mobster

De Vito disappeared in 2006 after the RCMP issued a warrant for his arrest on drug charges as part of Project Colisee.

Sources say the reputed mobster spent time in Florida, but returned to Canada and was staying with a woman named Gina Conforti.

He was captured in Oct. 2010 when someone tipped off police that De Vito would be using a gym in Laval, a few kilometres from his home.

De Vito is currently awaiting trial for allegedly importing 200 kg of cocaine into Canada.

Accused of murdering her children

Sorella was charged with murdering her children in May 2009.

Their bodies were discovered in May 2009 after concerned family members called police, and Sorella was arrested after she crashed her car into a hydro pole.

She was found fit to stand trial after a psychiatric evaluation, but remained in custody for 14 months before being granted bail in July 2010 for reasons that must remain secret due to a publication ban.