THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, August 5, 1995 TAG: 9508050268
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANGELITA PLEMMER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
A North Carolina man accused of trying to kill a Portsmouth police officer and abducting several Pizza Hut employees was set free this week when a judge ruled that he did not get a speedy trial.
Judge Von L. Piersall dismissed charges of attempted capital murder, abduction, robbery and firearms use against Fred Blount, 22, of Edenton, N.C., on Tuesday.
Blount had been in jail 16 months awaiting trial, but several of those months did not count toward the speedy-trial deadline because the delays were caused by Blount's attorneys.
Blount's attorney argued that, using this method, Blount had spent more than seven months in jail awaiting a ``speedy trial.''
In Virginia, prosecutors have five months from the preliminary hearing to bring an incarcerated defendant to trial.
After the ruling, Commonwealth's Attorney Martin Bullock said the judge penalized him for delays for which he should not have been held accountable.
``I think Judge Piersall is a very good judge, but in this case I think he made an incorrect decision,'' Bullock said. ``In these circumstances, the commonwealth should have been able to put on evidence that the speedy-trial (limitations) had not run.''
Piersall could not be reached for comment. Defense attorney Michael Rosenberg declined to comment.
Blount was charged in connection with the March 24, 1994, robbery of a Pizza Hut at 3522 Airline Blvd. Police charged Blount and three others, all of North Carolina.
Police said the men, carrying shotguns and handguns, entered the pizza shop, demanded money and held six employees hostage. An off-duty police officer ordered the men to halt. Instead, one opened fire and gunfire was exchanged. The men ran out the back of the store, taking $65 and payroll checks. No restaurant employees were hurt.
The foursome split up, with Blount and another suspect fleeing to North Carolina. They were arrested two days later.
Blount had remained in Portsmouth City Jail until Tuesday, when the judge ordered his release.
The dismissed charges were a result of seven delays in the case. Four were requested by Blount's attorneys. By law, the prosecutor is not penalized when the defense asks for a continuance.
Both sides agreed to a fifth delay.
Bullock said he only asked for two delays: one when his witnesses were asked to testify against co-defendants in another trial in North Carolina, another when his office shut down so employees could attend a funeral.
Bullock said those delays still did not bring the case past the five-month deadline. He said the defense-requested delays were being held against him.
But Blount's attorney claimed in court papers that his client had been incarcerated too long without a trial as of May 1, 1995, violating the speedy-trial statute.
In an appeal to Piersall on June 9, Blount wrote: ``My case has been postponed numerous times by my attorney and also by the Commonwealth's Attorney. I've been incarcerated coming to fourteen months, still pending trial, and I'm asking for some mercy.''
The statute contains several exceptions that let cases be continued without penalizing prosecutors, said Roger Groot, a law professor at Washington & Lee University. But keeping track of the time that's lapsed can be difficult, he said.
``In this case, somebody counted the days differently than the judge ended up counting them,'' Groot said.
Usually, a speedy trial is not an issue, Groot said, so the statute is rarely used. When it is, appeals courts strictly enforce it. Long delays can result in lost evidence and witnesses who die, move or are hard to find.
The speedy-trial rule is ``a right to the defendant, but it also has a larger social purpose as well,'' he said. ``If you believe that justice is better if justice is swift, then it's probably better, if the guy is in jail, to get him convicted and get him a sentence.''
Bullock said he cannot appeal the judge's decision.
``I don't have any recourse,'' Bullock said. ``The court has dismissed the charges.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Portsmouth Commonwealth's Attorney Martin Bullock said Judge Von L.
Piersall penalized him for delays for which he should not have been
held accountable.
by CNB