Judge disqualifies three Scott Co. prosecutors from case for violation

A judge has disqualified three prosecutors in a Scott County murder case after they violated a 2016 court order regarding neurological testing of the defendant.

Judge Michael Pritchett issued the order last month in Butler County Circuit Court in the case of defendant and Sikeston, Missouri, resident William Henry Applewhite III.

On Wednesday, he filed another order to require testing be done at the Ozark Medical Center in West Plains, Missouri, to assure confidentiality.

Applewhite is accused of fatally shooting Christopher Q. West on Jan. 11, 2015, and attempting to shoot another person. He faces charges of first-degree murder and assault, two counts of armed criminal action, unlawful use of a weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm.

The three prosecutors -- former acting prosecuting attorney Heath Robbins and assistant prosecutors Tamara Carlson and Zac Horack -- were disqualified by the judge for having contact with the defense neurological expert, Dr. Robert Gardner, on June 1, 2017.

In an Aug. 23, 2018 written order, the judge said the actions of the prosecutors were "inappropriate, unnecessary and unacceptable."

He ruled the three prosecutors are barred from any further involvement in the case, including access to any documents or materials.

Defense attorneys Heather Vodnansky and Thomas Marshall, both of Columbia, Missouri, filed a motion seeking to disqualify the prosecutors with the Scott County Prosecuting Attorney's Office and the Missouri Attorney General's Office, and appoint a special prosecutor.

But Attorney General Josh Hawley argued in a court document blanket disqualification of a prosecuting attorney's office is an "extreme remedy."

Hawley, through assistant attorney general Christine Krug's written response to the court, argued prosecutors received "no insight into defense trial strategy."

Krug said the jail administrator and sheriff believed it would be unsafe to leave Applewhite unshackled for the testing. In 2015, Applewhite was indicted by a grand jury on charges he assaulted three officers in the Scott County Jail. Then-Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter said in 2015 that Applewhite charged one of the officers, getting him in a choke hold, then obtained control of a Taser, using it on each of the officers and two inmates.

The judge's ruling does not disqualify the county prosecutor's office as a whole nor the Attorney General's Office.

According to the defense motion, Gardner and an assistant traveled to the Scott County jail June 1, 2017, to do the testing.

Both jail administrator Justin Wooten and Scott County Sheriff Wes Drury were aware the court had ordered that Applewhite be unshackled for the testing, according to court documents.

But Wooten and Drury went to the prosecutor's office and met with Carlson and Horack to discuss the matter.

"Wooten and Drury were concerned because William was supposed to be unshackled during the examination," defense attorneys wrote.

The two prosecutors called Robbins to voice their concerns. Robbins then called the judge. Defense counsel was not contacted.

Robbins subsequently informed Horack and Carlson the unshackling order had been modified. Robbins said the judge indicated "if the testing could be done without divulging any confidential communication, then William could be unshackled but with a guard in the room. But if any patient information had to be disclosed, then the guard could not be in the same room as William and Dr. Gardner, and defense counsel should be contacted," according to the motion.

Gardner subsequently said he did not need the defendant to be unshackled in order to test "William's brain wave functioning," defense attorneys said. But because of the delay, Gardner said the testing would have to be rescheduled.

Defense attorneys wrote "there is no question that this court's order was violated by the Sheriff's Department and the Prosecuting Attorney's Office."

mbliss@semissourian.com

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