THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 3, 1995 TAG: 9506030324
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
Another expensive trial involving court-appointed defense attorneys was due to start this week, but it was averted by the guilty plea of a man charged with killing Michael Jordan's father.
Even with the shortened legal proceedings, Larry Martin Demery's case has cost taxpayers $62,767.25 in attorney fees, according to figures from the state Administrative Office of the Courts.
The guilty plea ``probably saved us 10 or 11 weeks,'' Hugh Rogers, one of Demery's attorneys, said Friday.
Had Demery not pleaded guilty, two defense attorneys, the district attorney and a number of investigators, clerks, bailiffs and the judge would have begun jury selection this week. Demery's trial was estimated to run eight to 12 weeks, including jury selection.
District Attorney Johnson Britt said he planned to call 900 to 1,000 prospective jurors, all of whom would have been paid for every day they were at court. Jurors get $12 a day their first week and $30 a day thereafter.
Rogers has been paid $46,815 for 539 hours of work on the case. His co-counsel, John W. Campbell, has been paid $15,952.25 for 187 1/4 hours of work. Figures for both lawyers are expected to rise as more bills come in and because their client still faces more court appearances.
``I'm not going to Europe or anything,'' Rogers said. ``It goes to cover office expenses and overhead.''
Demery pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and a number of lesser crimes and agreed to testify against co-defendant Daniel Andre Green, who has maintained his innocence and faces a fall trial on charges of killing James Jordan.
North Carolina projects $27,114,554 in legal defense expenses for this fiscal year. Most of that will be paid to private attorneys appointed by courts to defend indigent clients in trials and appeals.
The most expensive legal proceeding in the state's history has been the prosecution of defendants in the Little Rascals Day Care Center sexual abuse case. Two defendants were convicted, but new trials have been ordered, a move that is being appealed by the state. Two other defendants entered no contest pleas and three have yet to be tried.
The Little Rascals case already has cost the state more than $1 million and will go higher, said Dallas Cameron, assistant director of the Administrative Office of the Court. The Jordan case was expected to eclipse that amount before Demery entered his plea.
Trial costs totaled approximately $1,163,845 in Little Rascals, including costs for prosecutors, security and appeals handled by private attorneys.
KEYWORDS: GUILTY PLEA MURDER by CNB