On Nov. 25, following two motions filed by Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Victoria Shackelford in the murder case of Timothy Eugene Moore, 34th District Court Judge Tina Brooks Green worked out a procedure to get the voluminous number of evidence documents to the defense attorney and her client without letting them go public.
Shackelford’s motions asked for a protective order and to file all pleadings under seal.
Judge Green went into a private bench conference with Prosecutor Shackelford and retained defense attorney Kristina Joseph to work out the details.
Moore, 34, of Ohio is charged with the June 22, 2017 first-degree murder of Egypt Covington in Van Buren Township, along with home invasion, and six weapon charges.
The charges were brought by the Michigan State Police. Officer in charge is MSP Detective/Sergeant James Plummer.
Moore attended the Zoom court session from the Wayne County Jail where he is being held without bond. There were about 63 people watching the session via You Tube.
The probable cause conference was adjourned until 11 a.m. on Dec. 9, before Judge Green because of the discovery matters.
She asked Prosecutor Shackelford to send Joseph some of the discovery to share with her client. Judge Green said agreeing to the protective order prevents any third parties from having access to any of these documents. Joseph said she agreed as long as her client is not defined as a third party. Judge Green said Moore was not a third party.
“When you get the documents from your attorney you are not to share them with anybody,” Judge Green warned Moore.
Prosecutor Shackelford said there are voluminous documents, from 4,000 to 5,000 pages of documentation. She said she intended to begin by sending the interrogation of the defendant, detailed records and mapping with this defendant and 20 different lab work results.
Judge Green said there was no intention of impeding the defense attorney’s ability to represent her client. She said if the prosecutor gave her all the discovery at once, she would have a “bowl of documents.”
Judge Green said over the next two weeks Joseph would be able to take a bite of the evidence and start working through it with her client.
Joseph told Judge Green that her client was sitting at the Wayne County Jail and, “My client’s life is at stake here – and his freedom.”
“You will not be sitting there with nothing to do,” Judge Green replied. “There will be enough documentation for you to review.” She said there will be release of the documents and no stonewalling.
“You will have the opportunity to represent your client the way that you should,” Judge Green said.
“I will provide Ms. Joseph with the investigation report, which is already under seal by the court,” Shackelford said, noting Joseph can discuss it with her client, but she should send no paper to the Wayne County Jail.
“I take issue with that,” Joseph said. “I need to provide it to my client.”
Judge Green said Joseph could get the investigative report and read it to her client and get it later for him.
“It is unwise to provide it to the defendant,” Shackelford said, adding, “There is the likelihood it would make its way onto social media.”
She said the document is 20 pages long and has information on an ongoing investigation. She said she would be happy to redact it before providing it to Joseph.
Judge Green ordered Shackelford to give an unredacted copy to Joseph which she can read to the defendant. She also ordered the prosecutor to provide a redacted copy that Joseph could share with Moore.
“For two weeks you both should have enough on your plate to move forward,” Judge Green said to the attorneys.
“One bite at a time,” Judge Green said. “I think we can get through it.” She told the attorneys she would make herself available by Zoom to them at any time to answer questions on details as problems arise.
Shackelford said she would call Joseph and they could work out the language for the protective order and submit it to the judge by the end of the day for her to sign.
Joe Stafford
The probable cause conference for Joe Stafford’s charge of bank robbery in Belleville was adjourned to 11 a.m. Dec. 9 before Judge Green because defense attorney Sam Churikian said he did not have all the discovery.
He said he has paper discovery, but not the fingerprints, photos from the bank, and other pictures.
Judge Green said Belleville police officer in charge of the case is Kris Faull and so Assistant Wayne County Prosecutor Jane Gillis said she would contact her for the discovery.
Gillis said her paperwork said Officer Jeff Wickham is the officer in charge, but Judge Green said her paperwork shows a strike through Wickham’s name with Faull replacing him. She said it might be Faull is now a detective and is in charge of the case.
[Belleville Police Chief Dave Robinson explained later that it was Officer Wickham’s day off when the warrant needed to be signed and so Cpl. Faull signed it. He said the bank robbery is still Wickham’s case. Chief Robinson said all his officers are detectives in his small department because they don’t have enough staff to have separate detectives.]
Stafford, 55, of Powder Springs, Georgia, is charged with robbing the Chase bank in Belleville on Nov. 7. He is being held in the Wayne County Jail on $10,000 bond.
Stafford also has been charged with robbing another Chase bank in Canton on Nov. 5.
Ervin Milton Sanders
Ervin Milton Sanders, 59, of San Antonio, TX, had his probable cause conference before Judge Green on Nov. 25 and his preliminary exam was set by Zoom for Dec. 21.
Sanders is charged with malicious destruction of fire or police property and aggravated domestic violence on Nov. 14 in Van Buren Township. He is free on $5,000 personal bond. Henry Schneider is his defense attorney and Jane Gillis is the newly assigned Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor on the case.
David Osmond Brown
34th District Court Chief Judge Brian Oakley adjourned the probable cause conference of David Osmond Brown, 52, of Sumpter Township until Nov. 18. Brown is charged with operating while intoxicated, 3rd offense, on June 25 in Sumpter Township.
He is free on $5,000 personal bond. His defense attorney is Philip A. Ragan.
On Nov. 17, his probable cause conference was adjourned until Dec. 2 and on Dec. 2 defense attorney Ragan asked for another week. He said his client will be in Sobriety Court and this means the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor. He was planning to have Brown in Sobriety Court in 36th District Court, but later decided to try to get him in Sobriety Court in 34th District Court. Judge Oakley adjourned the probable cause conference until Dec. 16.