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More motions to disqualify have been filed in gas tank caseThis article was originally published in the the Amador Ledger Dispatch on June 18, 1999, and is reproduced here with its permission. By Diane Smith JACKSON—Motions to dismiss have been filed in the ongoing gas tank removal case by attorneys for two local defendants. On behalf of their clients, attorney Reid Roberts of Stockton representing Mark Sherrill, and Bud Lewis of Jackson representing Dave Mason III have asked that charges stemming from grand jury indictments be dismissed and that the special prosecutor David Irey and Amador District Attorney Todd Riebe be disqualified. Riebe and Irey have also filed responses to charges leveled against them by defense attorneys which call into question, professional ethics, overbroad use of powers, unauthorized searches and unauthorized grand jury proceedings. All motions are set for a June 25, 1:30 p.m. hearing. However, it is expected that the first thing the superior court judge will address are the 13 motions Clyde Blackmon, attorney for the third defendant, Robert Womack, filed last month. Blackmon, at that time, asked for an evidentiary hearing if the dismissal motions were filed by attorneys for Sherrill and Mason. The motions last month and this week request a complete dissolution of all charges including a dismissal of any information taken in what are called overbroad search warrants based on alleged false affidavits. Blackmon's motions asks the judge to suppress all information from the October 31, 1998 and Jan. 11, 1999 searches conducted at the Womack's Ridge Road home because, the motion states, the warrant was overbroad, illegal and violated Fourth Amendment rights. An interesting side note is a letter, dated Oct. 30, 1998 which Irey sent to Robert Womack, telling him he could bring any documentary evidence that he would like, to the Wednesday Nov. 4 grand jury proceedings. The next day, before the letter was received by Womack, a search party was in Womack's house, confiscating all paperwork, including genealogy records, personal letters from since-deceased family members, income tax records as well as centrally kept KRL records of the adult children. As of this week, the return of seized items has been requested, according to Robert Womack, but have not been returned and a complete record of all that was taken is still forthcoming. Riebe in his response motion this week maintains, "Womack is an integral part of the KRL either as partner or agent. Womack claims otherwise." His motion continues: "The defendant claims KRL is an estate planning tool. However from evidence seized, it is not so clear." Riebe does not offer what the seized items are alleged to represent but uses the term "white collar crime" without giving specifics of his use of the term. An evidentiary hearing, suggested by Blackmon, is expected to illuminate the use of such terms and ensure a "fish or cut bait" conclusion. Blackmon said in his earlier motion that he was prepared to proceed with an evidentiary hearing to demonstrate his allegations if the prosecution contested those allegations. The prosecution denied those allegations in the recent filing. Sitting Judge John Cruikshank of Stockton is expected to tackle the evidentiary hearing first. Once that decision is made the motions filed by other defendants are expected to be similarly resolved since they fall closely along the same lines. Counter responses to the recent defense and prosecutorial motions are expected to be completed by Monday, June 21 with the final motions to be addressed in court Thursday, June 24. A September trial looms if there is no dissolution of charges. Copyright © 1999 Amador Ledger Dispatch |
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