Judge Turns Down Almost All of Brandon Scott Lavergne’s Requests, Including Bid to Withdraw Guilty Pleas
In a move that makes you want to say "YAY, justice system," a judge turned down confessed killer Brandon Scott Lavergne's attempts to withdraw his guilty plea. He also pretty much turned down everything else Lavergne was asking for, too.
The court's decision means that Lavergne will continue serving his life sentence in Angola State Penitentiary after confessing in August to the murders of Mickey Shunick and Lisa Pate. Shunick was killed in May 2012 in Lafayette Parish, while Pate was killed in 1999 in Acadia Parish. He's without a lawyer and is representing himself before the court.
Here's a list of some of the major things Fifteenth Judicial District Court Judge Herman Clause denied Lavergne, according to the Newsradio KPEL 96.5 in Lafayette.
- Request for a list of witnesses who testified for the state before a Lafayette Parish grand jury back in July 2012.
- Request for transcripts from a 2008 Acadia Parish grand jury hearing in which Lavergne was not indicted for the murder of Lisa Pate.
- Request for a free copy of the search warrant used to investigate the Shunick case and the search warrant for a hidden recording device Lavergne claims was worn by his former wife during a 2005 visit while he was in prison on another charge.
- Request to stop media coverage of the case and public access to the documents Lavergne files with the court.
- Request for all pre-trial motions filed by Lavergne’s court-appointed attorneys before his conviction.
- Request for a return of Lavergne's personal property -- a cellphone, computers, electronic equipment, clothing, documents and a sword. (Got to have that sword, right?)