And Let us not Forget Rachel Hoffman

In light of the previous post the following are links to stories posted by the Tallahassee Democrat while I was gone, relating to the death of Rachel Hoffman, a 23 year old graduate student in treatment for substance abuse used by the Tallahassee Police Department as an informant despite the obvious impediments to any type of "recovery" Ms. Hoffman may have hoped for.

Grand Jury Selection Handled in Private: "Adria Harper, director of the First Amendment Foundation, said: "I'm not aware of a specific law that would provide for closure of the selection process. It seems like the law is unclear in regards to that issue."

Public Defender Meddling:

State Attorney Willie Meggs said Green's lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Ines Suber, attended part of the selection process. Suber wanted to directly question potential grand jurors, but Leon Circuit Judge Kathleen Dekker only allowed her to suggest questions and challenge the selection of grand jurors.

Meggs said Suber was "meddling" and that her request would've disrupted the selection process.

"The grand jury is of no concern to the defense," Meggs said.

Suber disagreed.

"We're just merely doing our job or exercising our right, and that's why they put it in the laws," she said. "If they don't want the defense lawyers to be able to challenge it, they need to go to the Legislature to be able to change the law."

Suber said this is the first time she's asked to challenge potential grand jurors for a client. Suber has been with the Public Defender's Office for 18 years and has been involved in many capital cases.

"This is a very unusual motion and one that I don't do often, but I felt in this particular case that it was appropriate," she said. "My argument was because of what the publicity has been, I was afraid that the prospective grand jurors might have been tainted and could not be impartial."

New Grand Jury expected to take part in Rachel Hoffman probe: Meggs said defense attorneys "were meddling in things that were no concern of theirs. The grand jury is of no concern to the defense."

A bailiff has told all media to leave the courtroom. Judge Terry Lewis will decide whether to let the media back in, the bailiff said.

Judge says defense in Hoffman case can not question potential grand jurors:

A Leon County circuit judge has allowed the lawyer of one of the two defendants in the Rachel Hoffman death case to submit suggested questions to be asked of potential grand jurors, but not directly question them.

Circuit Judge Kathleen Dekker said this morning at an emergency hearing that Assistant Public Defender Ines Suber, who represents defendant Andrea Green, can submit the questions by noon today.

Suber wanted to question the grand jurors to make sure they have not developed a bias against Green because of the media coverage surrounding the case, but this request was not granted.

State Attorney Willie Meggs said his office would have made sure the judge examined potential grand jurors for bias anyway.
NOTE: We have printed excerpts from these stories we found interesting. They are not meant to be construed as conclusions or summaries and each story should be read in it's entirety to insure each excerpt is read in the context it is meant to be AND EACH READER ARRIVE AT THEIR OWN CONCLUSIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS.

Other links to posts on Rachel Morningstar Hoffman Here.Add to Technorati Favorites

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