Shawn Adkins Attorney makes written statement

[Aedrys]

Maybe Baez is his mentor and he has been glued to CA's case since he graduated? Maybe he's even poster here to get the thoughts of both sides?

Oh GOD HELP US if that is true...I cannot TAKE another Baez! The Frye Hearing today was a disaster as usual thanks totally in part to Baez and company. Just kill me if SA's lawyer turns out to be Baez Jr!

 

[Truthwillsetufree]

Elizabeth Smart's case is one that constantly makes me question whether they have the right suspect.

For months all I heard was "Richard, Richard, Richard" and "Elizabeth has been murdered."

The only people we heard otherwise from was Elizabeth's family who kept insisting that Mary Katherine said it was NOT Richard who came in and took Elizabeth.

Still, it was insisted over and over that it was Richard. I was one of the few who believed the kid.

Had Ed Smart not taken it upon himself, to get the sketch done... when Mary Katherine remembered it was "Emmanuel" and then had AMW air it when the cops wouldn't release it.... who knows when Elizabeth would have been found, if ever.

I always have this little nagging voice now that wonders.... no matter how guilty someone looks.... what if they are not? What if this creepy guy, odd lawyer and weird family are all right and he is innocent?

What if by some miracle Hailey IS being held by someone out there... and like Elizabeth, no one is looking for her alive because they are so convinced they know who did it...

Absolutely... the odds are slim. But I would guess a very large majority would have said the same thing about Elizabeth and Richard.

There is always that miniscule glimmer of hope due to Elizabeth Smart's case, for me anyway.

 

[grandmaj]

I'm seeing rude and snarky.

 

[hollyblue]

I was a little confused when I read this ..... YOUNG is BD's attorney, SA's attorney is C. Barrett Thomas

Thank you for bringing that to my attention. Confused me....two new attorneys annouced a day apart and the one replacing one from before...:waitasec::crazy:

 

[missy1974]

Thank you for bringing that to my attention. Confused me....two new attorneys annouced a day apart and the one replacing one from before...:waitasec::crazy:

still some interesting info But I did think I was lost for a minute LOL

 

[txsvicki]

And then there's this:

Red flags were first raised about the connection when an assistant prosecutor in Ware's office hit and killed a pedestrian, Darlene Hall, while the prosecutor was driving drunk.

Is this the guy that was in Lubbock? If so, was quite a few years back and the pedestrian ended up seemingly being blamed (as reported in the media) because she'd had a drink at a friend's house before walking home. That incident made me think no so highly of my hometown. He will be a good one for SA .

 

[bessie]

"At this point it is clear that law enforcement is not interested in cooperation..."

Translation: LE is not playing games, making deals, or buying BS.

That message came across loud and clear to me when Billie was arrested. It's nice to have it confirmed by SA's lawyer.

The attorney also states that he has strongly advised SA not to talk with LE anymore or "aid in the investgation" "to any degree". That's like saying "I'm taking my toys home because you won't play my way." I suspect the truth is LE doesn't want to talk to SA. They've heard what he had to say, and it was carp. He tried to manipulate and confuse the issues with statements like, "You should be looking at Billie and me" (to paraphrase), and the other one about searching in Scurry County. He lies about his whereabouts on the 27th, and then to top it off, he deletes items from his cell phone right in front of their eyes. Cooperation, my foot! He had an opportunity to cooperate, and he blew it. So now LE is busy collecting the evidence that will put him away for a very long time. Ha! Go LE!!

 

[katydid23]

I do think that Shawn is responsible for Hailey's disappearance, but what if he really is innocent?
Even thinking he is guilty, I hate the idea that LE is focusing solely on him and Billie. I've always thought the police ran concurrent investigations; one focusing on the family and the other focusing on an outsider. Of course Jaycee Dugard and Elizabeth Smart's cases should have reminded me to know better.

They have run concurrent investigations. They polygraphed other POI's, they interviewed a whole lot of people. They interrogated MB and her mother at the start to see Hailey arrived there and was abducted.
They followed through on the mystery man guy [BG] but decided he was not involved in the end.

The thing is that so many red flags are coming from Shawn that they keep coming back to him.

 

[sorrell skye]

Is this the guy that was in Lubbock? If so, was quite a few years back and the pedestrian ended up seemingly being blamed (as reported in the media) because she'd had a drink at a friend's house before walking home. That incident made me think no so highly of my hometown. He will be a good one for SA .

That info about the fatal car accident was actually involving John Young - BD's attorney, so it's probably off-topic to this thread, but it was brought up during the course of discussion of SA's and BD's attorneys. I think that's why there was confusion as to who it pertained to.

 

[sorrell skye]

After reading the letter from Mr. Thomas to KTAB, I shudder to think how this attorney's court motions must read.

I actually laughed out loud more than once while reading the letter. I couldn't decide if it was written by a bona fide attorney or by someone who plays one on teevee.

 

[katydid23]

After reading the letter from Mr. Thomas to KTAB, I shudder to think how this attorney's court motions must read.

I actually laughed out loud more than once while reading the letter. I couldn't decide if it was written by a bona fide attorney or by someone who plays one on teevee.

He really does sound like Baez doesn't he ? Snide, wordy and snarky.

 

[Kat]

After reading the letter (PDF) here is what I come away with:

Paragraph one:
States who he is and proceeds to displace blame from the shoulders of SA for refusing media interviews onto himself. SA is trying to work with LE---

Paragraphs 2 and 3:
Continuation of a defense attn working to displace blame, redirect attention away from his client and directly blame LE for the misfortune this family has had heaped upon them.

(not being snarky just don't know how else to put it)

I don't see a particularily green or inexperienced attn represented in this letter. I see some pretty darn strident words there about LE. This attn isn't mincing words much and he has slung a few at LE for sure. He states the LE is "harrassing" these families.

This guy appears to have hit the ground running and I'm not quite sure what to think of him yet. But at first blush and after having read the tone of this letter----the last person that comes to mind is J Baez. JMHO.

 

[sorrell skye]

For this attorney to take the stance that he has - accusing LE of "harassing" family members, claiming that LE is only interested in proving that Shawn Adkins is guilty of some crime through whatever means necessary - his inexperience is showing, IMO.

A seasoned attorney would not have written such a ridiculous letter to the media (and would not have misspelled the reporter's name, either).

I have yet to read any claims in the media by SA's family members that state they have been harassed by LE. According to the recent SWA, SA's family members have been cooperating with LE's requests.

The only people who seem to feel mistreated are SA and BD, according to their attorneys.

Furthermore, Mr. Thomas's claims that the family members who have been recently arrested are "technically victims" is ludricrous, IMO. Is he implying that LE should have looked the other way with regards to any legal action brought against BD, CD, and CO?

Is it Mr. Thomas's belief that they were all three victimized by LE because they were arrested for breaking the law? If so, he should be embarrassed for making such a claim.

If this is any indication of the best argument Mr. Thomas can come up with in his client's defense should his client be charged with Hailey's disappearance and/or possession of child *advertiser censored*, SA might want to make amends with his previous attorney Mr. Lyle.

Better yet, SA may want to throw himself on the mercy of the court and work out a plea deal ASAP.

 

[Donjeta]

The attorney sounds a bit inexperienced IMO. The letter establishes the inability to convince Shawn to take his advice, and it's a bit too wordy, IMO, the bit trying to include Shawn in the beleaguered and harassed victims group because it's a bit much. I don't see how he is a victim here, he was not Hailey's family. Trying too hard to play the pity card can work against him because a serial killer mask aficionado kind of guy just doesn't strike people as the usual type that they feel sorry for. The letter also should have left out all the blaming LE for doing their jobs if Shawn really had an interest in cooperating them in the investigation because generally this kind of blame game attitude is usually not conducive to future fruitful cooperation. But maybe Shawn hasn't and they just want people to think that Shawn is willing to cooperate and LE are the bad guys. If the attorney told him to shut up there is little or no interest in furthering a fruitful cooperative relationship between LE and the client. The pinning a crime part could have been left out as well because it just sounds like parroting Billie after she said something similar just recently. And why aren't they sure if a crime has been committed? Isn't child *advertiser censored* possession a crime, and someone had it, even if it wasn't Shawn.

The letter could have just said that we the undersigned represent Shawn Adkins, please note that he is willing to cooperate with LE in spite of being named a suspect, in the hopes that his innocence will be proven and Hailey will come home safe, and in the meantime, all the future media requests for information should be addressed to this office, respectfully, etc.

The focus on finding Hailey thing is starting to annoy me. She needs to be found, but she also needs justice, and she wouldn't be getting it if LE didn't pursue an investigation upon the obvious suspects. And anyway, it is quite often that LE are able to find a missing person after they've been able to pinpoint who did away with them and where they could have put the body. Otherwise it's a needle in a haystack after months have gone.

 

[LisaB]

He's a she. Shawn's attorney is a woman.

 

[Kamille]

He's a she. Shawn's attorney is a woman.

He's not a woman but his practice does include his wife who's name is very similar to his. It appears to be just the two of them.



Thank you for your interest in our practice. We are a husband and wife legal team practicing in Abilene, Texas. Our firm handles cases in the areas of personal injury, adoption, wills and probate, guardianship, divorce, and civil litigation. The practice also provides licensed mediation services.

http://www.yellowpages.com/abilene-tx/mip/the-thomas-firm-461840297

ETA: They have since moved from that location to the Hickory St location and added criminal law to their list of services.

 

[Truthwillsetufree]

After reading the letter from Mr. Thomas to KTAB, I shudder to think how this attorney's court motions must read.

I actually laughed out loud more than once while reading the letter. I couldn't decide if it was written by a bona fide attorney or by someone who plays one on teevee.

...or stayed at a Holiday Inn Express.

 

[Truthwillsetufree]

The attorney sounds a bit inexperienced IMO. The letter establishes the inability to convince Shawn to take his advice, and it's a bit too wordy, IMO, the bit trying to include Shawn in the beleaguered and harassed victims group because it's a bit much. I don't see how he is a victim here, he was not Hailey's family. Trying too hard to play the pity card can work against him because a serial killer mask aficionado kind of guy just doesn't strike people as the usual type that they feel sorry for. The letter also should have left out all the blaming LE for doing their jobs if Shawn really had an interest in cooperating them in the investigation because generally this kind of blame game attitude is usually not conducive to future fruitful cooperation. But maybe Shawn hasn't and they just want people to think that Shawn is willing to cooperate and LE are the bad guys. If the attorney told him to shut up there is little or no interest in furthering a fruitful cooperative relationship between LE and the client. The pinning a crime part could have been left out as well because it just sounds like parroting Billie after she said something similar just recently. And why aren't they sure if a crime has been committed? Isn't child *advertiser censored* possession a crime, and someone had it, even if it wasn't Shawn.

The letter could have just said that we the undersigned represent Shawn Adkins, please note that he is willing to cooperate with LE in spite of being named a suspect, in the hopes that his innocence will be proven and Hailey will come home safe, and in the meantime, all the future media requests for information should be addressed to this office, respectfully, etc.

The focus on finding Hailey thing is starting to annoy me. She needs to be found, but she also needs justice, and she wouldn't be getting it if LE didn't pursue an investigation upon the obvious suspects. And anyway, it is quite often that LE are able to find a missing person after they've been able to pinpoint who did away with them and where they could have put the body. Otherwise it's a needle in a haystack after months have gone.

BBM-I am always amazed in these cases when LE starts to put the pieces of the puzzle together and all of a sudden folks will start hollaring, we need to find (in this case, Hailey), we need to focus on Hailey. JMO but no one, including LE has lost focus and Hailey is at the forefront of this investigation. When suspects or POI or their attorneys start blathering this, it is almost a clear indication that they want the investigation to focus on anything but them. JMO.

I must say that your hypothetical letter is fabulous and for future reference this attorney should cut and paste.

 

[Kamille]

I like the part where he states that SA has been cooperative with both LE and media against his advice but then he goes on to say that he is no long willing to allow him to contribute. :waitasec:

This whole letter IMO is a response to Priscilla Luong for a request she made directly to SA for an interview after last weekend's events. Once BD got her lawyer and refused to speak to the media, she told SA he needed to do the same. BD made the decision that it was time for both of them to stop flapping their gums so she contacted the guy who has been offering his services for some time and told SA to get his lawyer involved.

So he contacted his lawyer and asked him to deal with the media who were trying to contact him for his response to the situation last weekend when BD got arrested, got the trespassing order against SA and then they met up the next day.

BD is calling all the shots here IMO.

ETA: It's interesting that this lawyer also seems to be parroting BD somewhat in his letter. SA obviously can't think for himself and everything he says, even to his lawyer, he seems to get from BD.

 

[Kamille]

BBM-I am always amazed in these cases when LE starts to put the pieces of the puzzle together and all of a sudden folks will start hollaring, we need to find (in this case, Hailey), we need to focus on Hailey. JMO but no one, including LE has lost focus and Hailey is at the forefront of this investigation. When suspects or POI or their attorneys start blathering this, it is almost a clear indication that they want the investigation to focus on anything but them. JMO.

I must say that your hypothetical letter is fabulous and for future reference this attorney should cut and paste.

It is ironic that this lawyer, representing SA and apparently his poor victimized family, wants LE to turn the focus back to "finding Hailey" and yet SA's poor ailing elderly grandmother supposedly would not allow any local searchers on her property and stated right at the beginning that she refused to listen to anything LE had to say.

Not one member of that family made any effort to find Hailey and that is likely because SA told them all she probably ran away, with her older boyfriend :waitasec:.

MOO