The third floor of Trigg County’s Judicial Center was supposed to play host to a Barroso hearing Friday morning including Jonathan McCoy, Keisha Stewart and Allison Hunter — centered on specific testimony from Hunter, the 2020 Trigg County death of Thelma “Ileen” Barnett, and the arson of her Will Jackson Road home.
Instead, Hunter did not appear — and remains at large with an active bench warrant on violations of her bond, her conditions of release and her charge of first-degree complicity to burglary.
Due to her absence and a March 13 deadline for briefs and reports to be filed, McCoy’s defense team — led by Wesley Boyarski — felt it necessary to file two motions for Judge Jamus Redd’s consideration:
— One requesting defensive relief and the exclusion of Hunter’s testimony under Shaw, due to her unavailability for questioning.
— And, alternatively, if this is not granted, then Redd should grant relief by removing the death penalty as a sentencing option for McCoy in the capital case, which is set to be tried in July.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Carrie Ovey-Wiggins agreed that Hunter’s absence Friday loomed large, and that her testimony — excluded or not — was necessary for the clarity of potentially exculpatory evidence.
However, she called the motions “a little premature,” and that there was still time to not only locate Hunter, but to file disclose expert witness reports, new motions and the like.
Redd agreed with the Commonwealth, and denied both motions without prejudice — meaning they could be reconsidered at a later time, pending new arguments and written replies.
On February 24, 2023, Boyarski put forth a strong defense of McCoy, and at the time was seeking a bond reduction from $2 million to $50,000 unsecured. Furthermore, she urged that another pair of local repeat offenders, Hunter and her love interest John Jones, not only had explicit details of Barnett’s death, but also needed to be charged for their alleged involvement in the crime.
At that time, Kentucky State Police Detective Brian Hill testified that he conducted five interviews with Hunter, and each time came away with different — sometimes conflicting — bits of information.
A Barroso hearing is a specific legal proceeding in Kentucky, and it determines whether a defendant’s right to compulsory process must prevail over the witness’s full psychotherapist-patient privilege.
Redd also noted he still needs specific records from the Christian County Judicial Center regarding Hunter, and an outstanding issue remains in that expert testimony and a psychological evaluation of McCoy has yet to be turned over to the Commonwealth for review.
Boyarski told the court this would be rectified, following the handling of an undisclosed ex parte matter with the defense.
Redd also informed Ovey-Wiggins that he has yet to receive the “Casper records” that were subpoenaed by the Commonwealth, and those were due to arrive Friday.
A pretrial conference for all three parties was set for 9 AM, March 13.
