I’ll recap for those following this some of what happened yesterday afternoon in court in Dale county that bordered on crazy. High points are Rene Crumb, who David Harrison planned as his star witness for the defense recanted her previous statements and admitted she lied about a “ confession “ made a former OPD officer. Described how she was on medication and ptsd. At one point she accused the defense attorney of causing her mother to die and something about him and drugs. Then a bodycam video of a OPD officer was presented from just after McCraney’s arrest where Crumb was agreeing to perjure herself, lie in court if they would leave her family alone. Stating her own family’s well being was more important than McCraney’s life. The judge will decide whether this will be admitted.
Her brother had some odd stuff to say not good about her.
Then in a bizarre twist Harrison produced a former OPD officer who worked narcotics that described a plane possibily delivering drugs he witnessed several times and named the officer being accused as one who was with others meeting the plane.
I could have missed it but I did not hear how this was directly tied to the murders or how the assumption was made about drugs but the officer also described he witnessed the accused officer around young underage girls but not the victims.
A third witness produced by Harrison delivered the Dothan eagle newspaper described seeing the victim’s car on multiple occasions and an unmarked police car beside it with the victim’s door open and at another point a Ozark Police cruiser both after midnight. He had detailed description of make model of the unmarked car that had a light bar in rear window.
Despite this I cannot see how the police dept is on trial especially due to this being strictly a dna issue where a defendant’s semen is directly tied to one victim in whats likely the last hour of their life.
My impression is, if I has a juror, would be if your going to defend your client by saying an officer did it then I want to see where or what is the specific evidence ? By the hearing this doesnt exist with the collapse of his star “confession “ witness.
There was also a accusation made by Harrison that the accused officer was intimidating a witness. In a exchange between the officer and Harrison it additionally appeared Harrison misunderstood the time records to think he was on duty that night when he was actually not. Not sure how a lawyer could make that mistake two years in on the case.
Im sure there was more I missed but it was a very informative pretrial hearing and it looks like the defense is putting the department on trial not explaining how McCraney’s dna came to be on a young victim he did not know. Maybe he will take the stand.
