OMAHA, Neb. (AP) A public defender has asked a judge to dismiss a man’s murder charges because Omaha police haven’t filed critical reports related to the case.
The Omaha World-Herald reports that Douglas County Public Defender Tom Riley highlighted at a hearing this week dozen of instances in which investigators didn’t file reports or book evidence in the 2015 deaths of 23-year-old DePrecia Neelon and 19-year-old Garion Johnson.
Riley says such delays can “make it virtually impossible to present a defense.”
Riley represents 28-year-old Marcus Short, who is scheduled to go on trial this month. Short and 28-year-old Preston Pope each face two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths.
Prosecutors say they sometimes share defense attorneys’ frustration in getting reports, but that dismissing the case would be extreme.