Arizona Republic - Judge: Suspect's rights violated by former sheriff - Judge removes Apache Co. prosecutor from case
Steve Hall
TPM - Judge Strips AZ Prosecutors Of Power ...
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http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/07/07/20100707ari
zona-sheriff-violated-suspects-rights.html
Jul. 7, 2010
Judge: Suspect's rights violated by former sheriff
by Dennis Wagner| The Arizona Republic
The Apache County Attorney's Office has been stripped of prosecution powers
against a defendant in a multiple-murder case because one of its investigators
- a former sheriff with a felony record - tried to pressure the jailed
defendant into taking a plea deal.
Last year, Apache County Attorney Michael Whiting hired Brian Hounshell as a
criminal investigator despite the fact that Hounshell, the former county
sheriff, had been convicted of felony theft in a public corruption case.
Earlier this year, Hounshell visited the suspect in jail and, without
notifying the man's attorney, pressed him to plead guilty or face a possible
death penalty.
Superior Court Judge Donna Grimsley has ruled that Whiting and Hounshell
violated the suspect's Sixth Amendment rights and must transfer the case to an
outside prosecutor.
The story begins with three homicides: William McCarragher, 72, was slain in
2007; Daniel Achten, 60, and Luis "Ricky" Flores, 16, were killed in separate
incidents last year.
Whiting said those cases remained unsolved until Hounshell was assigned to the
case. Whiting said that within days, Hounshell identified suspects in the
murders, leading to a series of confessions. Whiting said the main defendant,
22-year-old William Inmon, told investigators he killed the victims because he
believed they were involved in wrongful behavior. Inmon pleaded guilty to
first-degree murder.
Three other suspects, accused of involvement in various ways, also accepted
plea deals. A fifth person was ruled incompetent.
The final defendant, Joseph D. Roberts, 23, was arrested in September on
charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy, concealment of a body and auto
theft. According to Whiting, Roberts admitted that he took part in one slaying
and helped hide the corpse of another victim.
In February, before a preliminary hearing, Hounshell visited Roberts in jail
without notifying the defense lawyer. According to a transcript of the
conversation, Hounshell urged Roberts to waive his rights and accept a plea
offer for 25 years in prison. Otherwise, Hounshell warned, "It will be a
tougher road for you. . . . If you take the risk of a life sentence or lethal
injection . . . that is something you'll have to deal with."
Hounshell also advised the inmate, "We haven't charged your wife yet. So
that's another situation you may be dealing with at a later date."
During a hearing the next day, the White Mountain Independent reported that
Hounshell claimed he had visited Roberts out of sympathy, not to intimidate
the defendant.
"I intended to help him. That's what I wanted," Hounshell said.
On June 8, Grimsley ruled that the interview was a breach of Roberts'
constitutional right to legal counsel. She disqualified the Apache County
attorney from prosecuting Roberts. According to the Independent, a state Bar
complaint has been filed against Whiting's office.
In an interview this week, Whiting said that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last
year allows police in some circumstances to privately interview criminal
defendants who are represented by counsel. Based on that, Whiting said, he
instructed Hounshell to deliver a jailhouse message to Roberts.
Whiting said he was concerned that defense attorney David J. Martin of
Lakeside had not fully advised Roberts of the plea offer. Martin did not
return phone calls.
Alberto Rodriguez, a state Bar spokesman, said there have been 22 complaints
against Martin over the years, one of which resulted in discipline. Rodriguez
said Whiting has been the subject of four complaints; three were dismissed and
the issue involving Roberts is pending.
Whiting said he will not appeal Grimsley's ruling because it is important to
see the Roberts case adjudicated without delay.
Hounshell served eight years as sheriff before his indictment in 2005 on
charges of fraud, theft and misuse of county funds. He pleaded guilty to
felonious misuse of public money, agreed to never hold office again, and was
sentenced to probation. The felony conviction was later reduced to a
misdemeanor.
Whiting hired Hounshell in August to oversee complex criminal probes. Whiting
said the investigator proved his worth on the Inmon case: "We were able to
solve three murders that the Sheriff's Office had not solved."
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http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/07/former_az_sheriff_pressures_
murder_suspect_confess.php
July 8, 2010 | 4:30PM
Judge Strips AZ Prosecutors Of Power After They Allegedly Gave Suspect
Confess-Or-Die Ultimatum
Jillian Rayfield
A judge has ordered that the Apache County Attorney's Office in Arizona be
stripped of its prosecution powers, after one of its criminal investigators
allegedly pressured a murder suspect to plead guilty, implying if he didn't he
would face the death penalty.
The investigator was former county sheriff Brian Hounshell, who had earlier
been stripped of his sheriff duties after he was convicted of felony theft in
a corruption case.
If they're not careful, Arizona sheriffs might start to get a bad name...
Apache County Attorney Michael Whiting was investigating three homicides, and
hired Hounshell as one of the investigators last year. According to Dennis
Wagner of the Arizona Republic, "Whiting said that within days, Hounshell
identified suspects in the murders, leading to a series of confessions."
One of the suspects, Joseph D. Roberts, was charged with "first-degree murder,
conspiracy, concealment of a body and auto theft" before Hounshell visited him
in prison and, according to a prison transcript, said: "It will be a tougher
road for you. . . . If you take the risk of a life sentence or lethal
injection . . . that is something you'll have to deal with." He also said the
prosecutor's office hadn't "charged your wife yet. So that's another situation
you may be dealing with at a later date."
Hounshell did not inform Roberts' attorney of the meeting.
Superior Court Judge Donna Grimsley ruled yesterday that this violated
Roberts' sixth amendment rights, and transferred the case to another
prosecutor.
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Steve Hall
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