Update: Decision pending for Hilton medical test
DEMOCRAT STAFF REPORT • Published: November 19. 2010 7:45AM
Exactly where and when the man accused of killing Crawfordville nurse Cheryl Dunlap will undergo a medical test his attorney says is crucial to his defense won’t be decided until the week after Thanksgiving.
Rather than deciding the issue at a hearing Friday, Circuit Judge James Hankinson ordered prosecuting attorneys and public defenders in the first-degree murder case against Gary Michael Hilton to consult with Leon County Sheriff’s Office officials and come back to him with a plan that balances public safety with Hilton’s right to the test.
“There are still several options possible,” Hankinson said.
During the hearing, Assistant Public Defender Ines Suber said a facility in Gainesville is the only place her team has found where Hilton could have the undisclosed type of test in time for the information to be used in preparation for his trial, which is slated to begin Jan. 31.
“At the present time, there are no other facilities which accommodate this type of test,” Suber told the judge. “We didn’t choose it because it was far, we chose it because it was the only one in the state of Florida.”
Suber said Hilton, who, weeks before being charged in Dunlap’s 2007 death pleaded guilty to the 2008 slaying of a Georgia hiker, has been a “model innate” during his time in the Leon County Jail. Jail officials testified he spends 23 hours a day alone in his cell, mostly sleeping and reading a newspaper. Suber pointed out that his nearly five-hour extradition drive from Georgia was without incident.
Senior Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Georgia Cappleman argued that transporting Hilton to Gainesville is a costly, unnecessarily risk. All of his movements while in custody here have been controlled by the sheriff’s office, she pointed out, and he remains a very dangerous person.
Whatever test Hilton may need — the specifics of which are sealed to both the state and the public — can be administered in Tallahassee, Cappleman told the judge.
“They can do anything here at Radiology Associates that the defense may need,” she said.
After the hearing, Leon County Sheriff Larry Campbell said transporting Hilton anywhere — particularly great distances — is inherently risky. His top priority is the safety of the public, followed by that of his deputies. Hilton’s safety is third in line, he said.
“We have no idea who he may have as friends or what he may have up his sleeve,” Campbell said.
Campbell said he’s also concerned about Hilton being allowed to take off his metal restraints for tests and being left alone with a medical technician.
Suber dismissed those concerns, saying that Campbell had no idea about the tests.
No matter where the tests are eventually administered, Campbell said his department will handle it.
We will get him where he needs to go,” Campbell said.
During the hearing, Hankinson also addressed the issue of sealed documents and closed pretrial proceedings.
After hearing from attorneys for the Tallahassee Democrat and WCTV, he ruled that the general location of the medical facility be open to the public, but the time of the test and the facility’s name and address will be kept under seal in the interest of safety and to dissuade disruptive media attention.
Hankinson allowed Suber to briefly confer with him in private about the nature of the tests, but in open court cautioned her about going too far in sealing documents beyond those covered by a 2008 order that pertains only to pre-trial evidence shared by the prosecution.
Any requests to limit public access should be narrowly drawn, he stressed, and the media must be given advance notice of efforts to seal documents or close hearings that would normally be open.
Suber recently tried to have a noticed hearing closed and unilaterally filed motions under seal.
“I am not going to grant blanket requests for closures,” Hankinson said. “Let’s do better on giving everybody an opportunity to be heard and follow procedures.”
Morning update
At a hearing this morning, Circuit Judge James Hankinson is expected to decide whether a motion regarding the transportation of accused killer Gary Michael Hilton 150 miles to a medical facility for tests should remain sealed or be open for public viewing.
Attorneys for Hilton, who is facing first-degree murder, kidnapping and grand theft charges in the death of Crawfordville nurse Cheryl Dunlap, say the motion should remain sealed under an earlier court order in the case because the tests are part of their discovery process. Disclosing where and when the test would occur also would threaten transportation security in the case, they say.
Attorneys for the Tallahassee Democrat and WCTV, however, argue the transportation motion should not have been unilaterally sealed and are pressing for it to be opened.
http://www.tallahassee.com/article/...date-Decision-pending-for-Hilton-medical-test
