El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks declared the second day “a good day for the state” after a recess in a hearing on accusations of prosecutorial misconduct.

“I think it was a good day for the state,” Hicks said after the hearing. “I think everything turned out well.”

Hicks, who is seeking to retain the seat in the Nov. 5 general election, then encouraged El Pasoans to vote. Hicks did not ask El Pasoans to vote for him, he simply asked them to vote.

Hicks’ comments come after two contentious days of testimony that accused Hicks of ignoring concerns that his office had illegally obtained and listened to private jailhouse conversations between the gunman, Patrick Crucius, 26, and his defense attorneys. . The defense team has argued that those conversations are protected by attorney-client privilege laws.

Lead defense attorney Joe Spencer declined to comment, citing a gag order issued in the case that prevents defense attorneys, prosecutors and witnesses from speaking publicly about the case.

“We are under a gag order, we cannot comment,” Spencer said. “And since we are not politicking, I cannot comment.”

The second day of the hearing was marked by a strong defense by the district attorney’s staff who testified that they did nothing illegal with the jailhouse conversation recordings or visitor logs involving the gunman being held at the Downtown El Paso County Jail.

Judge Sam Medrano issued no ruling Friday, Nov. 1, after more than eight hours of testimony heard over two days on allegations that staff in the district attorney’s office illegally wiretapped phone calls and failed to turn over key evidence to prosecutors. defense lawyers.

Further: Day 2 begins in El Paso Walmart shooting hearing over alleged misconduct: Live updates

Hicks has repeatedly denied that his office engaged in any wrongdoing in the case.

The hearing took place on Thursday, October 31 and Friday, November 1 in the 409th District Court of the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse in downtown El Paso.

Six witnesses took the stand during the hearing, but more than five more witnesses called by defense attorneys are still expected to testify. Medrano scheduled the hearing to resume on December 11.

While the testimony focused on the district attorney’s office’s handling of evidence, it remains unknown whether prosecutors’ actions violated the gunman’s constitutional rights and whether the death penalty will remain on the table as a possible punishment. .

The gunman is charged with one count of capital murder of multiple people and 22 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in the racially motivated mass shooting on August 3, 2019 that left 23 people dead and dozens more injured. Hicks seeks the death penalty.

Legality of prosecutors listening to phone calls from jail

Prominent prosecutor John Briggs, who has played a key role under three different El Paso district attorneys, disputed defense attorneys’ claims that jailhouse phone calls were legally protected by attorney-client privilege laws.

Spencer cross-examined Briggs and the exchange between the two El Paso legal heavyweights was at times contentious, as the men continued to challenge each other’s opinions during Briggs’ testimony.

Spencer asked Briggs if he believed it wasn’t a violation of his client’s rights for prosecutors to listen in on the conversations.

“With someone in custody in jail, the case law is very clear,” Briggs argued. “His privacy rights are basically nonexistent and phone calls coming out of jail are recorded and everyone knows it. In fact, at the beginning of the phone call, he says, ‘this phone call is being recorded.’

“It’s being recorded, which means, as I see it, first of all, I don’t know why a lawyer would talk to a client on a phone call that’s being recorded and expect to have any right to privacy in that conversation. “.

Briggs argued that prosecutors had every legal right to listen to the conversations of the gunman and his lawyers.

“I understand attorney-client privilege and all that, but if you had that conversation in front of a third person, you’re waiving that attorney-client privilege,” Briggs said. “If that phone call is being recorded, that means I can hear it and you should not expect to have privacy on that phone call… So do I have the right to hear that? Yes.”

Further: Key hearing begins on prosecutorial misconduct in Walmart shooting case: Live updates

Briggs said it’s “extremely rare” that he has to listen to calls from jail and, for the most part, he doesn’t hear them.

“It may be constitutional, but it’s not Christian,” Briggs said of listening to jailhouse phone calls.

Spencer responded that the defendant and his attorneys have no discretion or ability to waive privacy.

“Thank you for the way you responded, I’m sure you got everything you wanted, but you are aware that those phone calls that are recorded, neither the attorney nor the client has the discretion or ability to suppress that disclosure, what a waiver. “

Briggs quickly responded: “That’s why these discussions shouldn’t take place on those phone calls.”

Former prosecutor testifies about concerns over mishandling of evidence

The most important testimony was that of the former Assistant District Attorney Lorette Hewitt, who accused Hicks of ignoring her concerns about legal and ethical issues related to the Walmart case.

Hewitt learned about the jail calls while she and other prosecutors were reviewing evidence. He attempted to notify Hicks, but was unsuccessful. He then immediately alerted defense attorneys about phone call recordings in prosecutors’ possession.

He claimed Hicks was upset by his actions in notifying the defense team, even though it was prosecutors’ obligation to share that information with the gunman’s attorneys, Hewitt said.

“It’s about respecting the law,” Hewitt said in his testimony. “It’s about not hiding anything.”

The lack of concern allegedly shown by Hicks played a role in why Hewitt, who was hired by Hicks to lead the Walmart case, resigned from her position.

Further: Prosecutor Testifies DA’s Office Mishandled Evidence in Walmart Mass Shooting Case

Hewitt also testified about evidence she and prosecutors obtained by interviewing former neighbors of the gunman. Neighbors claimed the gunman suffered from serious mental health problems and was “not mentally well,” Hewitt testified.

Hewitt believed the evidence should have been turned over because it could help defense attorneys fight the death penalty for their client. The notes she took from the interviews were never given by prosecutors to defense attorneys after she resigned, she claimed.

Hicks and his prosecutors told Medrano that they found no notes about Hewitt’s interviews in the evidence collected in the case.

Gunman will spend life in maximum security prison in federal case

The gunman has already been convicted of the mass shooting in federal court. He pleaded guilty February 9, 2023 to 90 federal charges for the shooting after the US Attorney’s Office decided not to seek the death penalty.

He was sentenced on July 7, 2023 to 90 consecutive life sentences. A federal judge ordered the prison sentences to be served at the ADX Florence maximum-security federal prison near Florence, Colorado. Federal prosecutors said the mass shooting was racially motivated, as the gunman admitted he was targeting Hispanics, who he claimed were invading the United States.

You can reach Aaron Martinez at [email protected] or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT.

This article originally appeared in the El Paso Times: Judge Medrano to Resume Hearing on Allegations of Misconduct in District Attorney’s Office