Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 7, 1993 TAG: 9310080350
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-10 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PULASKI LENGTH: Medium
Wednesday, Circuit Judge Dow Owens denied a motion by Morehead's attorney, assistant public defender Cynthia Dodge, to have the trials moved because of extensive publicity about the cases and an unrelated murder conviction handed down in Montgomery County in August.
Morehead was sentenced this week in Montgomery County to life plus 44 years in prison on convictions of first-degree murder of a Christiansburg shoe store manager who lived in Pulaski County, and the attempted robbery of a Blacksburg pizza shop manager who led police to Morehead and two co-defendants.
Morehead is charged in Pulaski County with robbing Jim's Steakhouse manager Jim Duke in May 1992. He also faces charges of robbery, malicious wounding, conspiracy to commit robbery and wearing a mask in the commission of another robbery.
Those charges stem from the theft of almost $2,500 from Pizza Hut manager Mike Frost and another employee while they were making a night deposit in Pulaski. Owens also denied a motion to suppress physical evidence in the robbery cases. Dodge had asked the judge to prohibit the prosecution from introducing as evidence a briefcase and various writings that were found inside the briefcase.
The items were seized by Blacksburg police when Morehead, William Ray Smith Jr. and Katina Lynn Zelenak were arrested after the attempted robbery of Stuart Arbuckle, a Domino's Pizza manager who was making a bank deposit several hours after Lorna Raines Crockett, 32, the shoe store manager, was killed.
The briefcase contained information about several businesses and their night deposit procedures.
Morehead did not testify during Wednesday's motions hearing. Dodge said that had he testified, he would have said that he didn't give police permission to seize or open the briefcase.
A Nov. 8 trial date for one of the robbery charges was postponed. The cases are scheduled for Dec. 17-18 and Jan. 4-5. It had not been decided which case will be heard first.
by CNB