Published: August 11, 2008 03:52 pm         

Defense motions denied in Woodruff murder case

By Brad Kellar

Herald-Banner Staff



GREENVILLE - A state district judge has denied defense motions which sought to suppress additional evidence in the upcoming capital murder trial of Brandon Dale Woodruff.

Visiting State District Judge Frank Biard issued his ruling, along with his findings of fact and conclusions of law in the case, on July 25. His opinion was released Monday to the Herald-Banner by the Hunt County District Attorney’s Office.

Woodruff, 21, remains in custody at the Hunt County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond, charged with capital murder in connection with the deaths of his parents in October 2005. He has pleaded not guilty.

Chief defense counsel Jerry Spencer Davis had sought information from the District Attorney’s Office concerning the taping of Woodruff’s calls, including handwritten notes, copies of e-mails and memoranda concerning the recordings. Davis is also seeking the names of everyone who may have heard the recordings and all transcripts made of the tapes.

Assistant District Attorney Noble Walker had argued the tapes of the calls had already been turned over to the defense and claimed the additional information Davis was seeking was confidential, as it was privileged work product.

Davis’ latest motion had sought to “suppress any evidence or further investigation from the illegal tapes of lawyer client communications”, as he claimed to have evidence individuals not connected with law enforcement, who potentially could be called as witnesses for the prosecution, had listened to the tapes.

Walker denied the tapes had been heard by any lay witnesses, also denying the tapes had played any role in the prosecution’s investigation.

The arguments were heard again in a July 11 pretrial hearing, at which time the defense team had asked that if Biard would not order all of the records to be turned over, then order a sealed copy of the entire district attorney’s file be placed into the record, in the event of an appeal, and asked that the testimony of Texas Ranger Jeff Collins and two more potential prosecution witnesses be suppressed, as well as that of anyone else who may have listened to the tapes.

Biard gave both sides 10 days to prepare and submit their proposed findings and conclusions of law, then indicated he would take seven days to review the submissions and submit his own finding.

In his ruling, Biard said, “ ... there has been no information or evidence learned or obtained by the Hunt County District Attorney.

Trial Judge Richard A. Beacom has ruled Woodruff’s Sixth Amendment constitutional rights to confidentiality were violated when prosecutors listened to the recordings of telephone calls from the jail between Woodruff and his defense team. Beacom also appointed a special prosecutor from the Texas Attorney General’s Office, but has refused defense motions to throw out the case against Woodruff and dismiss the capital murder indictment outright.

Beacom has ruled evidence obtained from any calls between Woodruff and his defense team would be suppressed, as would any information obtained as a result of any investigation of the Hunt County District Attorney’s Office having heard said telephone calls between the defendant and his attorney/defense team.

Biard also ruled the District Attorney’s Office did not initiate any investigation based on the information obtained from the calls, and that the information Davis had requested in his latest motion was indeed work product, “protected by the attorney work product privilege and are not subject to disclosure.”

Biard said there was no additional evidence subject to suppression in the case.

Beacom has also appointed a special prosecutor from the Texas Attorney General’s Office. There had been no dates set as of Monday afternoon for any additional hearings or the start of trial.