Florida clown murder trial postponed after discovery of ‘clown sighting file’—The Guardian
Florida, man?
Actually, the story is rather more serious than your regular "Florida Man" story.
A woman is accused of shooting her lover's wife while dressed as a clown, and her trial has been delayed after it was discovered that the prosecution was concealing potentially exculpatory information. (A Brady violation)
The trial of a Florida woman accused of dressing up as clown in 1990 and fatally shooting the wife of a man she later married has been postponed, following the disclosure of a law enforcement file containing information about other clown-sighting leads at the time.
Prosecutors informed defense attorneys for Sheila Keen Warren last Thursday that they had found a “clown sighting file” which defense attorneys had been demanding but prosecutors had been saying they didn’t have, according to a court filing by defense attorneys in the Palm Beach county case.
Defense attorneys asked for a delay in the first-degree murder trial which was scheduled to start the next week. The jury trial was canceled on Friday.
Defense attorneys also are seeking sanctions against prosecutors for what they say are instances of failing to disclose evidence to the defendant and are asking that Keen Warren be allowed pre-trial release from jail.
The 25-page “clown sighting file” has the names, addresses or phone numbers of 40 credible leads, according to the court filing from defense attorneys.
The least surprising part, and honestly the most horrifying part, is the gross misconduct of the prosecutors, which is a sad commentary on the criminal justice system.
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