For nearly three hours Tuesday afternoon, defenders in Bill Deatherage and David Bundrick were alongside Commonwealth’s prosecutor Blake Chambers and Muhlenberg County special judge Brian Wiggins via video teleconference to discuss the many nuances and potential issues of the upcoming Paige Williams and Abby Leach trial — scheduled to begin February 27.
A large number of motions were efforted from the defense, including one from Deatherage just a week ago asking for a dismissal based on “unconstitutional vagueness.”
Deatherage and Bundrick also continued to raise the issue the difference between the words of “permit” and “allow,” as it pertains to day care leadership roles.
Chambers did agree to refining the Commonwealth’s indictment of Williams and Leach to say their alleged complicity was “intentional” on all eight counts, each for a different child.
Chambers also noted it’s the “burden of the Commonwealth” to prove victims, vulnerability, intent and abuse.
Each charged with eight counts of complicity to first-degree criminal abuse of a child under the age of 12, the duo have been accused of “breaching” their protective duties as leaders of former First United Methodist Church daycare workers in Allison Simpson and Nina Morgan — who were each convicted in Christian County Circuit Court last year.
Deatherage said his office has long filed a motion to produce records, specifically seeking an early call to DCBS regarding his client.
It has yet to come forth.
Chambers said a new phone system at DCBS simply made anonymous calls in good faith impossible to locate, and it wasn’t “going to provide the call” for defensive discovery.
Wiggins said it will be up to the defense, and at the end of the trial, if that proof has been provided through directed verdict.
Deatherage said he expected to be the defenses to be somewhat “antagonistic” at times, and that 17 jurors seemed necessary for a trial in this matter.
Wiggins ruled that there will be “not less” than 13 strikes for the defense — nine combined and two each for Williams and Leach — as well as nine for the Commonwealth, among a pool of 36 total jurors.
Previous trials with Simpson and Morgan clearly set some precedent in this case, producing considerable amounts of video, photography, parent testimony and the production of confirming identities of children that haven’t testified for themselves due to age.
These proceedings have also continued to bring about the questions surrounding the meaning of “day-to-day” care and responsibilities of “in loco parentis” — or, in place of the parent.
Given everything addressed Tuesday afternoon, juror orientation is expected to begin at 8:45 AM February 27, with voir dire and jury selection scheduled for 9:30 AM the same day.
Full audio of Tuesday’s conversation:
