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Ripley, W.Va. —
Following a similar move last week, the Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office moved Tuesday afternoon to dismiss the indictment against attorney Jessica Sullivan, who faced charges following July’s special Grand Jury session that rounded up over fifty individuals on meth-related charges.
Sullivan was due to stand trial Tuesday, October 13, on eight felony counts of possession of substances to be used as a precursor to manufacture methamphetamine and eight felony counts of conspiracy to commit a felony.
Late Monday afternoon, Sullivan’s attorney, Morgan Hayes, filed a motion with Judge Thomas C. Evans, III, to dismiss the case with prejudice due to “egregious prosecutorial misconduct.”
Hayes claimed that the prosecution had yet to disclose crucial evidence which he said the state intended to use at trial. The court had ordered during the discovery phase of the case that all evidence must be turned over to the defense by October 2.
At issue was a lengthy three-hour statement from James Coiner to prosecutor Daniel Dotson and Sheriff’s Deputy R.H. Mellinger on Friday, September 25.
Coiner was also indicted in July’s Grand Jury session on nine felony counts of possession of substances to be used as a precursor to manufacture methamphetamine and nine felony counts of conspiracy to commit a felony.
The new information obtained in the statement was used by the state as grounds to dismiss the indictment against Clifford Easthom, Jr., in order to present new charges in the case to the next session of the Grand Jury later this month.
“He provided very, very substantive information on numerous people,” Dotson said of Coiner’s statement at Tuesday’s hearing. “I believe that will result in other charges, as well as more definitive charges.”
Dotson said that Coiner’s statement implicated 51 people, including Sullivan.
In return for his statement, Coiner was allowed to plead guilty to only one charge of conspiracy to commit a felony, with the remainder of the charges against him dismissed. As part of the agreement, Coiner will turn state’s evidence and testify at trial against those he implicated, including Sullivan. Coiner’s plea was entered last Friday, October 2, in Circuit Court.
Hayes said that his office had yet to be provided with the statement Coiner gave to the state in violation of the October 2 deadline for discovery.
Dotson said the reason behind that was because the state had yet to transcribe the three-hour statement, the transcription of which he said would begin sometime later this week.
Following a similar move last week, the Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office moved Tuesday afternoon to dismiss the indictment against attorney Jessica Sullivan, who faced charges following July’s special Grand Jury session that rounded up over fifty individuals on meth-related charges.
Sullivan was due to stand trial Tuesday, October 13, on eight felony counts of possession of substances to be used as a precursor to manufacture methamphetamine and eight felony counts of conspiracy to commit a felony.
Late Monday afternoon, Sullivan’s attorney, Morgan Hayes, filed a motion with Judge Thomas C. Evans, III, to dismiss the case with prejudice due to “egregious prosecutorial misconduct.”
Hayes claimed that the prosecution had yet to disclose crucial evidence which he said the state intended to use at trial. The court had ordered during the discovery phase of the case that all evidence must be turned over to the defense by October 2.
At issue was a lengthy three-hour statement from James Coiner to prosecutor Daniel Dotson and Sheriff’s Deputy R.H. Mellinger on Friday, September 25.
Coiner was also indicted in July’s Grand Jury session on nine felony counts of possession of substances to be used as a precursor to manufacture methamphetamine and nine felony counts of conspiracy to commit a felony.
The new information obtained in the statement was used by the state as grounds to dismiss the indictment against Clifford Easthom, Jr., in order to present new charges in the case to the next session of the Grand Jury later this month.
“He provided very, very substantive information on numerous people,” Dotson said of Coiner’s statement at Tuesday’s hearing. “I believe that will result in other charges, as well as more definitive charges.”
Dotson said that Coiner’s statement implicated 51 people, including Sullivan.
In return for his statement, Coiner was allowed to plead guilty to only one charge of conspiracy to commit a felony, with the remainder of the charges against him dismissed. As part of the agreement, Coiner will turn state’s evidence and testify at trial against those he implicated, including Sullivan. Coiner’s plea was entered last Friday, October 2, in Circuit Court.
Hayes said that his office had yet to be provided with the statement Coiner gave to the state in violation of the October 2 deadline for discovery.
Dotson said the reason behind that was because the state had yet to transcribe the three-hour statement, the transcription of which he said would begin sometime later this week.
As he did in the Easthom case, Dotson moved to dismiss the case against Sullivan without prejudice in order to allow the state to re-indict using the new information during the October session of the Grand Jury, to be held later this month.
Hayes asked that the case be dismissed with prejudice, meaning the state would be barred from bringing new charges in the case, due to the state’s violation of the discovery rules.
Judge Evans disagreed with the defense’s claim that the circumstances fit the guidelines for dismissing a case with prejudice, saying a violation would have to be very significant or repeated, which he did not see in the current case.
“I do not find an abuse of authority by the government here,” Evans said.
Pursuant to the state’s motion, Evans dismissed the indictment against Sullivan without prejudice, allowing the prosecution to present the case again to the Grand Jury.
In addition to dismissing bond and the indictment against Sullivan, Evans also rescinded an administrative order restricting Sullivan from practicing law within the Fifth Judicial Circuit. Evans issued the order shortly after Sullivan was indicted in July pending the resolution of her legal matters.
