Sam “Tick” Francis
Appeals court orders judge to grant continuance in Scherrer case
It appears Melvin Scherrer’s trial for the December 2012 murder of Sam “Tick” Francis will not be held at the end of this month.
The murder trial had been scheduled Jan. 25-29 in St. Francois County. Scherrer, of rural Bonne Terre, is charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, felonious restraint, abandonment of a corpse and tampering with evidence and is facing the death penalty.
On Tuesday the Eastern District of the Missouri Court of Appeals ruled Circuit Court Judge Sandy Martinez should have granted Scherrer’s public defender’s motion for a continuance.
The St. Francois County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office is reviewing the ruling and determining whether to appeal to the Missouri Supreme Court.
In December his public defender, Cynthia Dryden, filed a motion for a continuance and then filed a writ to prevent Judge Martinez from requiring her to “try without delay a capital case she is unprepared to take for trial.”
Prosecutors have had problems prosecuting the case because Scherrer is in federal custody. In December of 2014 he was sentenced in federal court to 30 years in prison for drugs and weapons charges.
On Aug. 20 his previous attorney filed a motion for a speedy trial. Scherrer has refused to withdraw this motion and waive his rights to a speedy trial.
However, despite his wishes, Dryden filed for motions for a continuance because she needs additional time “in order to provide Scherrer with effective assistance of counsel.” Dryden claims the judge wrongly denied her motion because there is “good cause” for a delay in trial.
One big problem was that the federal government or Interstate Agreement on Detainers (IAD) only allowed the prosecutor’s office 120 days from the time he was placed in local custody to try the case or it seemingly would have to be dismissed or continued indefinitely. The judge set the case for trial in January so the trial would fall within the 120-day period but she also hoped that by doing so the appeals court would intervene with guidance on how to proceed.
The appeals court has now ruled that the IAD was erroneously interpreted because Dryden showed good cause for a delay. “Scherrer’s rights under the IAD do not prohibit the granting of (Dryden’s) request for additional time when good cause is shown,” the document states.
The court ruled that a reasonable continuance of Scherrer’s trial date is permissible and appropriate. It is not known when Scherrer’s next court appearance will be.
http://dailyjournalonline.com/news/l...b6a7c4586.html
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