Gary Dunn

[lorettalockhorn]

Dunn trial postponed — again

Delay marks third in case

CLARKSVILLE — The trial for a Dover man charged with capital murder in the 2005 slaying of Arkansas Tech University student Nona Dirksmeyer was continued Friday to April 12, 2010, due to “docket congestion,” a spokesperson from 5th Judicial District Circuit Judge William M. Pearson’s office confirmed Friday.
Gary W. Dunn, 29, remains in police custody in connection with the Dec. 15, 2005, homicide. He was arrested in August 2008, and the proceedings were moved to Clarksville in June amid concerns about the publicity surrounding the case.
Dunn was previously to stand trial starting Monday, but a continuance requested by his defense attorneys after prosecutors indicated they would call an expert witness who would testify the odds of DNA found on a condom wrapper at the scene belonging to someone other than Dunn were 1 in 120 million moved the trial to Feb. 1, 2010, before the latest delay was announced.
Pearson did not immediately return a call late Friday requesting more information about the delay.

http://couriernews.com/story.php?ID=22766

[FDInLaw]

Ugh. Should the April 12th date stick, Carol will be spending her birthday in court. :( I can't believe the trial has been moved yet again. :mad:

[sololobo]

The waters are already plenty muddied, so the defense shouldn't have any trouble accomplishing that. Of course McQuary could use the ADC database, that's my point. Why are Steffy/Robbins involved in this cloak and dagger BS? Especially if it's irrelevant?

And who else's DNA is on the wrapper? Why wasn't it pursued with the same zeal as Dunn's?

I guess it sells papers. Also, there may be some hostility between RPD and DPD over the Steffy incident.

"Russellville Police Chief Tom McMillen, while declining to speak specifically about the situation, said although he considered officers' request for outside employment on a "case by case" basis, certain situations would give rise to pause.
"Would I want an officer to work off-duty to investigate another department? No," he said." Courier-Democrat

I'm sure Dunn's attorneys will pursue the unknown DNA if useful to their case.

[lorettalockhorn]

I guess it sells papers. Also, there may be some hostility between RPD and DPD over the Steffy incident.

"Russellville Police Chief Tom McMillen, while declining to speak specifically about the situation, said although he considered officers' request for outside employment on a "case by case" basis, certain situations would give rise to pause.
"Would I want an officer to work off-duty to investigate another department? No," he said." Courier-Democrat

I'm sure Dunn's attorneys will pursue the unknown DNA if useful to their case.

I'm wondering if there is hostility in general over the Steffy incident and that's what that letter to the editor was all about. :shrug:

Seems like the prosecution would be equally interested in the other DNA. If Dunn's DNA was a factor in any way, shape, form or fashion in the Jones trial, logically this DNA will be for the new trial.

[lorettalockhorn]

Court schedule, weather cited in Dunn trial delay

Judge elaborates on previously cited ‘docket congestion’

While a judge initially attributed the six-month continuance of the trial for a Dover man charged with capital murder in the 2005 slaying of Arkansas Tech University student Nona Dirksmeyer to “docket congestion,” he said Thursday that may have been a “bad choice of words.”
Fifth Judicial District Circuit Judge William M. Pearson said he weighed several issues before deciding on the trial’s new April 12, 2010 court date.
“Basically, what happened was, we had a murder trial in Ozark scheduled the week before, and my fear was that it would run over into the Dunn trial,” Pearson said. “When I looked at that, I decided to go to April.
“Plus, in February, we’re more prone to bad weather,” he added.
Gary W. Dunn, 29, was previously to stand trial Sept. 28 in connection with the Dec. 15, 2005, homicide, but a continuance requested by his defense attorneys after prosecutors indicated they would call an expert witness who would testify the odds of DNA found on a condom wrapper at the scene belonging to someone other than Dunn were 1 in 120 million moved the trial to Feb. 1, 2010, before the latest delay was announced.
Dunn was arrested in August 2008, and the proceedings were moved to Clarksville in June amid concerns about the publicity surrounding the case.
Pearson said he did not foresee a special judge being appointed to hear the trial, as was the case for the previous defendant, Kevin Jones, who was acquitted of the crime by a Franklin County in July 2007. Retired Judge John Patterson presided over the case after former Circuit Judge James D. Kennedy recused himself.
“I don’t know those circumstances because I wasn’t around back then,” he said. “As far as I know, I’m the judge, and I’m going to hear this case.”
According to the Arkansas Judicial Code of Conduct, “a judge shall disqualify himself or herself in a proceeding in which the judge’s impartiality might be reasonably questioned.”
Look for additional information on the Dirksmeyer case and the Dunn trial in future editions of The Courier.

http://couriernews.com/story.php?ID=22820

[lorettalockhorn]

Moonlighting a complex issue for cops

While the details of actions taken by a Dover officer in relation to the investigation of the 2005 slaying of Arkansas Tech University student Nona Dirksmeyer remain unclear, a local case upheld by the Arkansas Supreme Court in 1986 involved similar issues — issues that affect police departments to this day.
Background: Todd Steffy, an investigative officer with the Dover Marshal’s Office, testified during a June 8 pretrial hearing in the case of Gary W. Dunn that he asked Dunn for fingerprints and a DNA sample on Sept. 11, 2007 following an alleged burglary, and the suspect agreed.
Dunn, 29, of Dover is the second person to be charged with the murder, after Dirksmeyer’s on-again, off-again boyfriend Kevin Jones, a Dover native, was acquitted of the crime by a Franklin County jury in July 2007.
Steffy also testified — publicly revealing the information for the first time — during the hearing that Dover attorney Michael Robbins, who represented Jones during the first trial, asked him to help with the investigation of Dunn. Steffy confirmed Robbins compensated him for his assistance, but did not reveal how much he was paid, saying he did not recall, nor did he specify during what time period he was employed by Robbins.
A similar incident transpired with a Russellville police officer in 1984 — and not without its consequences.
Larry Dalton was discharged from the Russellville Police Department on Sept. 7 of that year for failure to obtain written permission to engage in off-duty employment as required by the department. Though he appealed all the way to the state Supreme Court, the discharge was upheld at all levels.
Shortly before his discharge, Dalton acquired a private investigator’s license and was hired by a local attorney to investigate an alleged civil rights violation by the Dardanelle Police Department, according to the case file.
The state Supreme Court ruled there was nothing to suggest Dalton’s discharge was due to any reason other than the violation of department policy, which stated officers “shall devote their whole time and attention to their police duties. All off duty employment must be approved by the chief of police in writing.”
Russellville Police Chief Tom McMillen, who described Dalton, a former co-worker, as “something of a rebel,” said officers must now not only receive his approval, but also the mayor’s, before taking on another job.
“I have officers who are also carpenters and painters,” he said. “But do they investigate for other departments? No. I would never approve that in writing as long as I am chief.”
Dover, however, does not enforce the same policies as Russellville. When interviewed in September, Dover Marshal Rod Pfeifer said he was aware of Steffy’s arrangement with Robbins.
“He’s also a minister and a teacher,” he said. “I cannot say what he does on his days off. When he works for me, he works for me. This is just like anybody else in a second job.”
Dover Mayor Alan Bradley — also a sergeant with the Russellville Police Department, the agency which originally investigated Dirksmeyer’s murder — said in September he was never aware of Steffy’s employment by Robbins, but added it did not violate any city policy — yet.
“Right now I’m working on a policy and procedure book,” he added. “If a full-time officer is going to have another job, you know, I would like to have them request that employment through the city.”
Clarksville Police Chief Greg Donaldson, who refereed basketball for 17 years while also working for his agency, said his officers are allowed to hold second jobs pending his approval — but indicated certain positions create a conflict of interest.
“If they’re wanting to work off duty for another department, I can see that bringing up all kinds of issues,” he said. “If that goes to court at some point, they may be taking time away from my agency to answer a subpoena from another case they were working for another department.”
Pope County Sheriff Aaron DuVall confirmed Friday some of his deputies held second jobs, as well as enrolled in college classes, but added each employee received either his or the chief deputy’s permission before taking on those additional responsibilities.
“They have to understand that those other jobs can’t interfere with their regular work schedule,” he said. “If there’s an emergency going on, and they get paged, they have to drop what they’re doing and report to the sheriff’s office or wherever I need them.”
DuVall said his deputies were also allowed to work for other law enforcement departments in their off time as long as he approves it.
“In fact, we have an officer right now that assists a smaller agency that can’t afford to hire another full-time person,” he said.
According to the Arkansas State Police’s policy on outside employment, the agency forbids officers from engaging in “any employment that could require an ASP officer to testify from a position opposing law enforcement in criminal or civil litigation in which a law enforcement or governmental agency conducted the investigation or has been identified as a party.”
In addition, the policy also restricts officers from “conducting personnel investigations for private entities or any other employment, which could require an ASP officer to access law enforcement information, files, records, or services as a condition of the officer’s secondary employment.”
When attorney Jack McQuary of Little Rock was appointed as a special prosecutor in the Dunn case last year, he released information at the time of Dunn’s arrest that indicated DNA found on a condom wrapper near Dirksmeyer’s body was matched to both Dunn and Dirksmeyer.
Following the arrest, however, McQuary remained silent on how investigators obtained the DNA evidence, which was not presented at the trial for Jones.
When Pfeifer was asked in 2008 if Robbins, who also serves as Dover city attorney, requested Dunn’s DNA sample obtained by Steffy, he issued an unequivocal denial.
“Seeing that it’s a case we’re investigating here, I don’t’ know why Michael Robbins would have even asked for it,” Pfeifer said.
He said he did not know if Robbins had access to the sample.
Kevin Noppinger, lab director for DNA Labs International — which conducted the testing for the crime scene evidence that allegedly matched Dunn — testified during a Sept. 22 pretrial hearing. He told the court he received the first piece of evidence from the Dirksmeyer case Dec. 5, 2006, but did not receive a sample from Dunn until Nov. 22, 2007 — two months after the suspect’s arrest for the alleged burglary.
Noppinger, who appeared at Jones’ trial as an expert witness for the defense, testified at the hearing he was hired by Robbins and received the majority of his compensation from him.
In February 2008, Robbins announced a new DNA match in the case, and Dunn was arrested Aug. 22, 2008, and charged with the murder. He is scheduled to stand trial April 12, 2010, in Johnson County.

http://couriernews.com/archived_story.php?ID=22910&Search=moonlighting

[lorettalockhorn]

Prosecutor proposed for UA rape case

FAYETTEVILLE — The state’s prosecutor coordinator has recommended H.G. Foster as the special prosecutor to review the case of three Arkansas Razorbacks basketball players accused of rape.

“Once the judge signs that order, I’m done,” said Washington County Prosecuting Attorney John Threet, who asked for a special prosecutor Monday.

Circuit Judge William Storey, who had granted a request for the special prosecutor, was conducting a trial Tuesday afternoon and had not yet signed the order.

An 18-year-old University of Arkansas student told police she was intoxicated when the players raped her Aug. 27 at the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house in Fayetteville.

Threet requested the special prosecutor after the woman’s attorney accused him of having a conflict of interest in the case. Threet maintains his decision not to prosecute the players was based on the facts of the case.

Storey granted Threet’s request Monday and ordered Prosecutor Coordinator Bob McMahan to recommend a special prosecutor.

McMahan picked Foster,who served as prosecuting attorney for the 20th Judicial District from 1987 to 2006 and has handled cases throughout the state.

Foster investigated former deputies of the Benton County prosecuting attorney’s office from October 2008 to February 2009 and unsuccessfully prosecuted a Madison County man in July. He is working with special prosecutor Jack McQuary in the second trial in the case of Nona Dirksmeyer, an Arkansas Tech University student who was slain Dec. 15, 2005. That case has been reset for April.

Foster and McQuary both work for the prosecutor coordinator.

Special prosecutors are often appointed by a judge when there may be a conflict of interest “or, like in this case, where there are allegations made against the office,” Mc-Mahan said.

John D. Bass of Fayetteville, the accuser’s attorney, filed a motion Oct. 27 asking for appointment of a special prosecutor. Bass made the request after Threet declined to filecriminal charges against the players.

Threet said neither his office nor University of Arkansas police found probable cause to arrest any of the players.

Bass argues that Threet didn’t look closely enough at the case because his stepfather-in-law is former Athletic Director Frank Broyles. Also, Threet’s sister-in-law is married to Kevin Trainor, associate athletic director for media relations and communications.

In addition to the special prosecutor, Bass wants DNA samples from the athletes sent to the state Crime Laboratory.He argues that an examination of the complainant and her clothes found semen and that a match could prove the athletes lied to police.

Threet said he asked for the special prosecutor to expedite the process, which would have been slowed by Bass’ motion, which cited the wrong statute.

McMahan said Foster will be sworn in and granted all the authority equal to that of Threet but limited to the specific case.

Neither Foster nor Bass returned phone messages left for them Tuesday seeking comment.

This article was published today at 4:39 a.m.
Arkansas, Pages 12 on 11/04/2009

[upallnight]

Thinking of Nona as the Holidays are almost here. She loved Christmas per her Mama and I know it will be hard on Carol-my thoughts and prayers are with her. Nona, you are missed. :rose: