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Lyon
County Attorney Indicted
September 23, 2004 |
The Lyon County Herald Ledger
Choats go on trial
Jan.19-21;
Judge to set Hollis trial later
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By BOBBIE FOUST
Herald Ledger Staff
Lindell Choat and his wife, Mary Jayne, will get their wish for a speedy
trial on charges resulting from a beer party they allegedly hosted for
her son and 75 to 80 other teens Feb. 13, at Kentucky Dam Village State
Resort Park following Lyon County High School’s homecoming.
The Choats’ will be tried Jan. 19-21 in Marshall Circuit Court on
multiple charges including evidence and witness tampering. They were
offered a November or December trial date, but defense attorney Will
Kautz was unsure whether he would have sufficient time to prepare.
The judge set the trial Thursday after Kautz and special prosecutor Mac
Johns agreed on the dates. A pretrial conference is set for 3 p.m. Dec.
13 in Calloway Circuit Court. The date is Calloway’s regularly scheduled
rule day in the two-county circuit.
Kautz also filed motions for discovery of evidence against his clients
including grand jury testimony.
A pretrial conference for Scott Hollis, 19, of Princeton was also
scheduled for the same time. Hollis is charged with attempted rape of a
17-year-old girl who passed out at the party. His trial will be
scheduled at the conference.
All three defendants waived formal arraignment and pleaded not guilty.
Hollis, who had been in jail since he was arrested Sept. 24, sat with
his attorney, Willard Paxton, his hands cuffed behind his back.
Judge Dennis Foust granted a motion to lower Hollis’ bond from $25,000
cash to $10,000 cash or property.
“He cannot pay $25,000 bond,” Paxton said. “He’s never been arrested,
and is a lifelong resident” of Princeton. Paxton said Hollis could post
a property bond of about $20,000. Hollis posted a property bond and was
released later in the day.
Under conditions of his bond reduction, Hollis must maintain employment
and be under curfew except for one hour before going to work and one
hour after work.
Hollis works in his father’s shop from about 4 to 9 p.m.
Lindell Choat, who is the county attorney in Lyon County, was
automatically suspended from prosecuting cases in Lyon District Court
after the three defendants were indicted Sept. 23. But Choat is
continuing the practice of civil law, which includes his duties on
behalf of the fiscal court. He continues to receive his full salary.
Lindell Choat is charged with three Class D felonies — tampering with
physical evidence and two counts tampering with a witness. The
indictment alleges that he tried to persuade two police officers to drop
their investigations.
He also is charged with 15 misdemeanor counts including official
misconduct and unlawful transaction with a minor.
Mary Jayne Choat, a trained nurse, is accused of tampering with physical
evidence on Feb. 14, when she performed an illegal pelvic examination on
a 17-year-old to determine whether she had been raped, and to “prevent
others from reporting a crime may have been committed.”
Lindell Choat is charged with tampering with physical evidence for
allegedly allowing his wife to perform the examination.
Also Mrs. Choat is accused of 13 misdemeanor counts of third-degree
unlawful transaction with a minor in connection with providing a keg of
beer for the party.
The Choats and their attorneys, Mark Bryant and Kautz, conducted a news
conference with reporters on the lawn of the lawyers’ Paducah office
last Wednesday. But little information was forthcoming because the rules
of professional conduct limit what a defense attorney may say.
“Legal ethics forbid my speaking about the merits of this case,” Bryant
said.
Kautz told reporters that neither Lindell Choat nor his wife appeared
before the grand jury nor were they asked to appear.
Some people have called for Lindell Choat to resign. But Bryant said “he
will not resign.”
“Grounds for his removal are limited to felony conviction,” Bryant said.
“I remind you that Mr. and Mrs. Choat are presumed ... to be innocent of
any crime. That means you should give them the benefit of the doubt
until you hear all of the facts in this case.”
Bryant, who with Kautz, served more than 20 years as prosecutors in
McCracken County, said he had hoped to give reporters “a lot of
information about this case, but we got a Bar Association opinion that
limits what we are allowed to say. ...
“I was really planning and preparing to tell you everything about this
case because we don’t have anything to hide,” Bryant said. “I wish the
public did know what happened up there that day. ... There are people
who just automatically think that if you are charged, you must be
guilty.
“I can’t talk about it,” he said. “I can just tell you that we want a
trial and we want it fast.” |
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