Zach Adams guilty in kidnapping murder of Holly Bobo Sept 23, 2017

[katydid23]

Jeez. Is the judge allowed to have phone conversations with both the prosecution and the defence?

If they are both on the line in a conference call, it is fine.

It is also permissable in certain other specific situations, as long as notes are taken and the call is reported and described fully.

 

[Holly G. Lightly]

Yes, that is what I meant. East. Def not in Memphis. Considering JN hails from location with highest amount of prosecutorial misconduct cases in the state. In fact, read an interesting case today very similar to this one in which she was on the prosecution had the Marshall's pay one of their witnesses. Pretty crazy considering how hard she worked to discredit Agent Walker.

Not only that, but JN's boss/friend had ethics charges brought against her. She also showed up in court the day the verdict was reached.

 

[Jennifer17]

If they are both on the line in a conference call, it is fine.

It is also permissable in certain other specific situations, as long as notes are taken and the call is reported and described fully.

I am not sure that that happens where I live, but I don't know. I kind of think that judges should be like referees and not become involved in either side. Just follow the points of law during the trial.

 

[katydid23]

i think the major reason Thompson asked for him to recuse himself is about a phone call where the judge told the prosecution the defendant should take a plea ...actually he said they all should. That sounds a bit unusual. Interesting at the end of the day there was a sort of plea deal at least on the sentence.

It is not unusual for a judge to try and convince the attorneys, on both sides, to agree to a plea deal:

How Plea Bargains Get Made
Many cynics argue that like laws and sausages, plea bargains are best made out of public view. Read on and make up your own mind.

Plea Bargaining and the Judge's Role

Much of the time, plea bargaining negotiations take place privately between the defense lawyer and prosecutor, outside of court. The judge has no formal role until the plea is offered in open court.

In some courts, however, the judge is actively involved in pushing both sides to negotiate, even facilitating negotiations in the judge’s chambers (office). On occasion, the judge will provide guidance to the defense and prosecutor by indicating what sort of a sentence would be acceptable.


https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/how-plea-bargains-get-made.html

 

[katydid23]

I am not sure that that happens where I live, but I don't know. I kind of think that judges should be like referees and not become involved in either side. Just follow the points of law during the trial.

True, but even referees have to be a buffer during complicated situations.

The reason the phone conference with this judge happened was very interesting.

When Shayne committed suicide, his attorney brought a lawsuit against the prosecutors. I am not sure exactly what the suit was about.

But during that time, Attorney Thompson, Zachs attorney, reached out to Shayne's attorney and asked him to join the defense team for Zach.


The Prosecutors thought it was not right to be in current negotiations with that attorney on a pending lawsuit over Shayne's death, while at the same time, be in an ongoing jury trial against him. They felt that it put them at a disadvantage in terms of discovery in both cases. Are there things in one case that should not be shared in the other?

So the prosecutor called the judge with her concerns about the situation. I feel like that was a valid reason for a phone call. It was not a secret call. The defense was told about it and all of the transcripts were shared with them.

 

[Niner]

Good morning all!

Lots to read (again!)

snipped by me....
Was there an actual "Whereby the....defendant is sentenced to-------"? If there was I missed it. I saw the reading aloud of the agreed mergers for 25....etc, but not an official 'defendant is sentenced to----'
TIA

I, too, asked that earlier - I sure didn't hear either.... anyone? Was he actually sentenced or is there another court date. I know I heard Nov. 14th - but you all are saying that is a Status hearing for Dylan & Jason.... :dunno:

snipped by me....
IMO Any hint of a judge being potentially bias could come back to haunt the case.

I can think of one right off the bat.... Sierra LaMar! :gaah:

omeone asked for a post trial discussion ...it has been created.. but I don't see it as opened. do we know when it's going to open?

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=350188

It is open now - just checked! nline:

LOL! Yes, in my adult lifetime and I am 70. I hope I am never called again though.

Hey - I just turned 70!! Did you know 70 is the new 40??!!! :happydance:

The Jessica Chambers trial will start Monday, October 9th.

Do you have a link to that?!! TIA!

 

[MzOpinion8d]

The sentencing cannot take away his rights to appeals. I don't know that I've ever followed a trial were a plea agreement for sentencing was granted. Maybe I have and forgotten.

This was not a plea agreement. He was found guilty by the jury, but his plea was not guilty when the trial started.

What this is is a sentencing agreement, in which the defendant agreed to accept the sentencing offer made by the prosecution.

The advantage to the defendant is that he was guaranteed no death sentence. The advantage to the prosecution is they do not have to continue arguing the sentence in all the appeals that death sentence cases bring.

Edit to correct a word.

 

[MzOpinion8d]

I'm not surprised this is longest trial he's ever done. Decatur County only has a population of around 12,000 and Hardin county has around 26,000. These are very small places and not typically the scene of such a sensational crime or trial.

I heard him tell one juror that he had known his or her father for a long time. Did he say anything more than that? Not being a lawyer or Judge, I'm couldn't say if that's grounds for appeal or not. Judge McGinley has been practicing law since 1976 and as either an ADA or Judge since 1982. Living in a community of that size, I'm not at all surprised he knew some of the jurors.

I admit I was floored that he let the jurors take their notes. I hope he thought better of that before they left the building. Sure don't want anything to provide the basis for reversible error!

I'm curious, what would be the problem letting them keep their notes? The trial footage is available for viewing, and the transcripts will be available at some point, all of which may have info the jury didn't hear in the first place.

 

[SteveP]

Good morning all!

Lots to read (again!)



I, too, asked that earlier - I sure didn't hear either.... anyone? Was he actually sentenced or is there another court date. I know I heard Nov. 14th - but you all are saying that is a Status hearing for Dylan & Jason.... :dunno:



I can think of one right off the bat.... Sierra LaMar! :gaah:



It is open now - just checked! nline:



Hey - I just turned 70!! Did you know 70 is the new 40??!!! :happydance:




Do you have a link to that?!! TIA!

When I turned 60, I was told THAT was the new 40. My reply was "gee, who knew 40-year-olds have so many aches and pains"
BTW, would ya believe that after 5+ years and 1000+ posts, I apparently never learned how to snip part of a post....could someone enlighten me?

 

[turaj]

That is pretty standard, for judge to try and get the attorneys to make a plea deal, and avoid costly trials. My father was pressured to do that many times. Often, it is in the defendants best interests. ZA may have gotten a much better plea than LWOP if his attorney had considered it.

My casual outside observer take on the plea deal and the judge pushing it was with Zach who the family considered the "ringleader" anything short of LWOP would never have been possible.

 

[turaj]

"In a motion, she has argued that Judge Creed McGinley has shown bias towards the state.

Adams is one of three suspects charged with the rape and murder of Bobo in 2011.

Attorney Jennifer Thompson represents Adams. She said during a recent teleconference between herself, McGinley and the prosecuting attorneys, the judge made several comments that Thompson said clearly illustrate he has made a predetermination of Adams’ guilt. Thompson also believes McGinley was making those statements in an effort to induce a guilty plea.

Thompson quoted McGinley as saying, "If I were representing Zach Adams, and based on new developments in the case and what the court has been led to believe occurred, if I were Mr. Adams' attorney, I'd be beating down the door at 201 Poplar to negotiate a deal."

Thanks for getting that exact...and sorry but I do think there is something off with that...the whole hearing was odd with McGinley ruling on himself...but at the end of the day I think justice was served cut clearly Thompson does not.

 

[turaj]

I'm curious, what would be the problem letting them keep their notes? The trial footage is available for viewing, and the transcripts will be available at some point, all of which may have info the jury didn't hear in the first place.

juror notes and transcripts and videos etc. are very very different things. I am sure the judge was within his rights to let them take them . I just found it odd.

 

[Gee]

If they are both on the line in a conference call, it is fine.

It is also permissable in certain other specific situations, as long as notes are taken and the call is reported and described fully.

Wasn't there another concern raised about that conference call - where the defense had a person on that they did not acknowledge to the judge or prosecutors was present?


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[turaj]

Wasn't there another concern raised about that conference call - where the defense had a person on that they did not acknowledge to the judge or prosecutors was present?


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yes Thompson called her own assistant who was on the call as she is usually to take notes but when judge asked all participants to identify themselves she remained silent...and really no reason given. Details are fuzzy as I watched it while doing other things but I clearly remember the assistant being chastised by the judge. not happy with her at all..then Thompson proceeded to request the judge recuse himself based on already having decided that her client is guilty.

 

[Harmony 2]

When I turned 60, I was told THAT was the new 40. My reply was "gee, who knew 40-year-olds have so many aches and pains"
BTW, would ya believe that after 5+ years and 1000+ posts, I apparently never learned how to snip part of a post....could someone enlighten me?

Hi SteveP
There are two ways to snip a post.
1) hold down the left click button on your mouse and drag across to highlight the area you want to snip, press the backspace button on your keyboard one time and the highlighted portion will disappear, add the word <snip>
2) place your cursor at the end of the sentence or word you want to snip and press the backspace button to the point you want it snipped to- then add the word <snip>

It is a courtesy to add <snipped by me> at the beginning of your response to indicate that there was more to the post that was snipped.

 

[maskedwoman]

I have a question about an appeal in TN if someone could answer it. In the state where I live, a death penalty case is automatically appealed to the state supreme court at taxpayer expense. People receiving conviction with a lesser sentence don't get an automatic free appeal. Those with lesser sentences can appeal, but they have to pay their own lawyer and other fees or find a lawyer to take the appeal on a pro bono basis. My question is if ZA appeals, will he have to pay for it himself.

DP cases get an automatic appeal in Tennessee as well. I'm not sure if it's automatically taxpayer funded or not if the defendant is capable of paying. I imagine most death penalty defendants are indigent as far as paying for an attorney, so the state probably does pay because of that. I think a lot of those appeals are also handled pro bono. If the attorney wins, it pushes his fees to other clients up.

 

[Gee]

Just saw an interview with Cindy Adams on WSMV - basically said Zack is not guilty, didn't receive fair trial, and court was biased. I didn't know she had given an interview yesterday- but I cannot find it anywhere on the WSMV site to link


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[Gee]

yes Thompson called her own assistant who was on the call as she is usually to take notes but when judge asked all participants to identify themselves she remained silent...and really no reason given. Details are fuzzy as I watched it while doing other things but I clearly remember the assistant being chastised by the judge. not happy with her at all..then Thompson proceeded to request the judge recuse himself based on already having decided that her client is guilty.

Thank you. I I got frustrated with all the pre trial stuff and delays


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[turaj]

Just saw an interview with Cindy Adams on WSMV - basically said Zack is not guilty, didn't receive fair trial, and court was biased. I didn't know she had given an interview yesterday- but I cannot find it anywhere on the WSMV site to link


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Surprise surprise...unfortunately the judge did provide some fuel for this argument...I don't think it will go anywhere legally but sometimes I almost wonder if the judge himself were not a bit too close to the area and case?

 

[Gee]

Surprise surprise...unfortunately the judge did provide some fuel for this argument...I don't think it will go anywhere legally but sometimes I almost wonder if the judge himself were not a bit too close to the area and case?

Forgot to add - she said she is also concerned for Dylan's upcoming trial - so she is trying to push for a change for his trial maybe? However she has already said they were innocent so I'm not surprised at her interview


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