A new lawyer will be appointed to represent Herbert Lucas Scott in his upcoming sexual assault trials.
Scott faces several sexual assault allegations that allegedly occurred at his parents Doolittle Ranch and the Pony Patch day care program.
Scott’s attorney in his first trial, that resulted in a mistrial, Ernie Marquez has withdrawn. Mr. Marquez told the court that he could not be effective counsel. In a hearing yesterday, the prosecution objected to the withdrawal motion, saying the victims in this case have waited long enough. The prosecution said they have talked to 11 of the alleged victims and 8 were strongly against any delay. The cases have been going through the court system for over two years.
After consideration, District Judge Patrick Murphy granted Marquez’s request to withdraw. Murphy said that this is a very complicated case and he understands the prosecutions concerns—that resetting the trials in traumatic for all involved.
The Public Defender’s Office told the court that Scott did qualify for a public defender but that because of a conflict, the office could not represent Scott.
Judge Murphy is seeking out three attorneys from out of the area to find Scott representation.
A hearing has been scheduled for October 5th to name Scott’s new representation.
With over 2,000 pages of discovery, along with hundreds of text messages and photos, it is unclear how long the case will be delayed.
