Patterson attorney requests conviction be overturned

Ryan Patterson, who is serving three life sentences for the 2009 deaths of a pregnant Cape Girardeau woman and her 15-year-old son, appeared in court Monday, where his attorney entered arguments to have his conviction overturned or amended.

Patterson filed a handwritten motion last year in Cape Girardeau County Circuit Court, where he claimed his case "has many of the hallmarks of wrongful convictions," including a lack of physical evidence, self-interested witnesses, allegations of misconduct by investigators, ineffective defense counsel and "an appeals process stacked against the defendant."

His attorney, Jessica Hathaway, delivered a brief argument to Judge William Syler as Patterson sat quietly next to her. Each claim was based on "inefficiencies" of his appellate council.

According to Hathaway, Patterson received "ineffective assistance" from his appellate attorney, Ellen Flottman, and was possibly tried by a tainted jury.

Because Patterson's trial received extensive media coverage in Cape Girardeau, jurors for the appellate hearing were selected from Pemiscot County in the Missouri Bootheel. Later, it was discovered the county was in the KFVS viewing area, where it was possible jurors had seen or heard reports of the trial. Julie Hunter, who is representing the state, said Patterson's attorney was made aware of the issue but chose not to select another jury because Pemiscot County's population had one of the state's highest percentages of African American residents. She also said counsel believed the jurors were not prejudiced in "any way, shape or form."

According to Hathaway, Flottman also failed to raise any claims when opposing council struck three of the four black jurors from the jury pool. Hunter said Flottman and then-Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle both agreed the state's decision to strike one of the jurors was a "race-neutral decision" because she admitted to having been convicted of a felony. The state did not strike a white juror who had been convicted of passing bad checks, Hathaway pointed out.

She also noted that the court was never able to find the felony conviction on the black juror, but Hunter said the woman confessed to committing forgery "which is always a felony in the state of Missouri." Allowing a felon to serve on the jury could also be grounds for a retrial or dismissal, she added.

After the arguments were presented, Judge Syler said he found it "strange" that the court never uncovered the juror's felony and that he would take the claims under advisement. No official ruling was made nor was a future court date set at the Monday afternoon hearing.

srinehart@semissourian.com

388-3641

Pertinent address:

44 N. Lorimier St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.